Just Around the Bend
by Unfortunately Muggle
Summary: Molly's life is full of drama, including moving to the outskirts of Forks. She's used to dealing with it on her own, but when she meets Paul and Molly's drama hits full force, will he let her deal or do his job as a protector? Paul/OC imprint. NEW SUMMARY
1. Chapter 1

**a/n: this is my first attempt at a werewolf imprint story. it's Paul/OC. I wanted to try my hand at how this werewolf with a bit of a temper would handle falling in love. I've had a lot of ideas for new stories lately and this one stuck out to me more, but i might not be able to update very often since i'm trying to get other stories in order but we'll see how it goes. just as a heads up, Jacob will be in the story and may seem OoC bc i'm not having him all mopey over Bella bc she more than likely will not be mentioned in the story and I didn't want to explain Jacob in Paul's story. i hope that doesn't bother anyone. I also hope you enjoy and i would love your reviews!! tell me what you think! love!!  
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I pulled the curtains back from my window, and I gazed out over the greenery that was Forks. My newly found residence. I had moved here with my mother a few days ago and I had a feeling it would take a while to get used to all the green. Plus the rain. I didn't really mind rain all that much, as long as it didn't prevent me from going outside. I hated being cooped up in the house. Just thinking about it now made me want to get out.

"I think I will," I said to no one. It was still early, only 8:30 in the morning, but I didn't care. My legs were itching to run. I quickly changed out of my pajamas and into some shorts and a t-shirt. I shrugged into my black zip up hoodie but left it open. I made my way downstairs where I found Boomer, my husky, lounging on the couch where he knew he shouldn't have been.

"Boomer," I said warningly. His ears perked up and he immediately jumped off the couch, tail wagging. "You better not let Mom catch you up there." He just continued to wag his tail at me, making me smile. "Wanna go for a run?" His tail started wagging even faster if that was possible. He loved going running with me no matter what the weather or the time of day. I went to the hook beside the door where his leash was hanging just as my mother walked through the door looking ragged.

"Hey, Molly. What are you up to?" my mom asked me.

"I just thought I would go for a run with Boomer. How was work?" I asked in return. Mom had gotten a job working third shift at the hospital in Forks, so this would probably be the most I saw her all day. She would be getting home as I would be leaving and I would be going to bed when she was off to work.

"It was work. Although, there was an extremely handsome young doctor..." she trailed off, and I silently hoped she wasn't getting ideas. I knew she still had feelings for my father even though they divorced over a year ago. She seemed to want to squash those feelings by dating frequently, often with younger men. "Well, I'm off to bed. I'm glad you got me to unpack when we got here instead of putting if off. I am dead on my feet and there is no way I would have been able to do it after working all night. Have a good run. I think there is a beach nearby. You should check it out."

"I might. Sleep well," I said.

I hooked the leash to Boomer's harness and stepped outside. I shivered slightly against the cold of the early morning and the fact that it was just now getting to become Spring so it was still cold out. I took a deep breath and the cold air hurt my lungs, but it felt great. Boomer tugged against his leash and whined, indicating that he wanted me to get going. He was a rather large dog, almost outweighing me, and could easily drag me anywhere, but he was also a very well behaved dog. "Hold your horses." I pulled my brown curly hair up into a high ponytail and tied my sneakers. "Alright. Now we can go."

We started running in the direction opposite of town, toward the La Push Reservation. My mom had bought a house right on the outskirts of the reservation and after only ten minutes of running I crossed the La Push line. I had found my rhythm in running and was only aware of my breath rising in puffs in front of me and the even thumps my shoes made against the ground. It was easy enough to lose myself. The scenery didn't change much, just green and more green. Trees, grass, bushes. Everything. Green. Even in the very earliest of Spring. We were nearing some of the more residential area of the reservation, I guessed, because I began to see a few small houses scattered about.

Boomer started tugging at his leash and whining again. He never did that while we were running. He was always content to run beside me. If I sped up, so would he. If I slowed down, so would he. At times when I could tell he was getting bored I would unhook his leash and take off in a sprint to race him. I don't know why he started acting like this.

"What is it, Boom?" I asked. Then, without warning, he took off running, jerking the leash from my grasp. "Boomer!" I yelled as he disappeared around the bend. I ran after him, not wanting him to get lost. "Boomer!" I rounded the bend in the road and saw Boomer running towards three extremely large guys with dark hair and very tan skin that were standing in a yard. My steps faltered for a moment as I was taken off guard by the size of them. I watched as Boomer ran right up to them. I picked up my pace again as one of the guys leaned down and pet Boomer's head.

"Sorry about him," I said as I reached them. The three guys looked up at me. "He doesn't usually run off like that, especially not right up to people."

They straightened up to talk to me and effectively towered well over a foot above my five foot one inch frame. "It's ok. Maybe we just smell good to him or something," one of them said with a laugh. "I'm Jacob. That's Embry," he pointed to the guy to his left,"and that's Quil," he pointed to the guy handing Boomer's leash back to me.

"Nice dog," Quil said.

"Thanks," I said, taking the leash. "I'm Molly, by the way, and this," I reached down and scratched Boomer's ear," is Boomer."

"I don't think I've ever seen you around before," Jacob observed. "Are you new?"

"Yeah. My mom and I just moved to Forks a few days ago," I could hear the slight resentful tone to my voice.

"You don't sound too happy about that," he mused.

"Yeah, sorry, it's just...I didn't expect my crazy mother to move across the country right before the end of my junior year--" I stopped myself before ranting on about my mom's antics to complete strangers. Luckily there was a noise from inside the house that was cause for distraction. It sounded like a rather loud thud followed by a string of curses.

"Damn it, Embry! If you don't learn to pick up your stuff so people don't trip all over it," the door to the house burst open revealing an equally large guy who was shaking slightly.

"Calm down. It's really isn't something to get all worked up about," Jacob said evenly, as if to a psychotic person that was about to have a breakdown. I noticed Jacob's eyes cut to me briefly.

"Well, he needs to learn--" the guy's eyes landed on me and he stopped short, his shaking ceasing. He just stared at me with something in his eyes I couldn't really decipher. Soon Jacob, Quil, and Embry were looking back and forth between me and the other guy. I felt my face warm as I looked at them all staring at me.

"Well, I, uh, better get going," I stated, feeling extremely awkward. "Come on, Boomer. See you guys around," the last part came out as more of a question, but I just felt the situation becoming more uncomfortable.

We jogged back to the road where I abandoned my quest for the beach and turned back toward my new home, I glanced over my shoulder once and saw the guy on the porch still watching me. As soon as we passed back through to the Fork's side, I stopped and unhooked Boomer. "Wanna race, boy?" I needed something to help rid this overwhelmingly feeling of pent up emotion that seemed to be making me antsy all of a sudden. Boomer barked in response and waited for me to get ready. "One," I started counting us off, "Two...Three!" We both took of running as fast as we could. I could feel my legs and my heart pounding in protest but it felt so freeing. As soon as the house came into view, Boomer let out a hidden burst of sped and bounded onto the porch, beating me.

"No fair," I panted out, resting my hands on my knees while I regained my breathing. Boomer just bark jovially in response. "Shh, boy. You'll wake up Mom." I patted his head lovingly as he followed me inside. I went upstairs and as I opened the door to my room Boomer jumped up on my bed and laid down. I grabbed some more clothes so I could take a shower. I was really just going through the motions as my mind was still down the road in La Push.  
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Who was that guy and why was he staring at me like that?_


	2. Chapter 2

**a/n: thank you all so much for your reviews!! I just wanted to let you know that I have pictures of Boomer and Molly's car on my profile if you want to check them out. i hope you enjoy and please review, i really love to hear what readers think!  
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**disclaimer: i do not own anything. Characters and anything else relating to the Twilight series belongs to Stephenie Meyer. **

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The next day came all too soon in my opinion. It was the day I was dreading most: my first day at Forks High. The school was tiny enough as it is with the entire student plus teacher population hardly even making up a fourth of what it was at my last school. I was sure to stick out. Mom wasn't back from work yet, but she had said she would be here a little early so she could see me before I left. As I waited on her, I rummaged through my things making sure I had everything. Pencils, paper, folders, etc. everything seemed to be in order. I sat back down on my bed with a huff. Boomer pressed himself up against me, and I raised my hand to pet him.

"It won't be too horrible, right?" I asked him. For some reason, it never struck me as odd to talk to my dog. Boomer had such personality it was like he really understood what I was saying. Now, his eyes seemed to convey a great sense of sympathy for me and he licked my face. "I've never been the new kid before. With a school this small everyone is bound to notice that I don't belong there." That's exactly how I felt about it. I just didn't belong here. My life and home were back in Georgia, where me, Mom, and Dad used to be a family. I was going to _try_ to make the best of this. I had promised. It would just take some time to get used to. I'm sure the people would be nice enough. Aren't small towns supposed to be full of people that knew everyone and was always inviting them over for cookies? Maybe I was deluded. I couldn't tell. The guys from La Push had seemed promising enough. I wish I was able to go to school with them. At least I would have a few familiar faces even if we weren't really friends. Of course, they lived on the reservation and had a school of their own to attend...plus they all looked like they were about 25 anyway.

I heard the front door shut and assumed my mother was home. I grabbed my book bag and, with Boomer at my heels, headed down the stairs. I found my mom hanging her coat on the hook next to the door when I walked into the living room. "Morning, Mom."

"Hey, Molly. All ready for school?" she asked.

_No_, I thought. I didn't want to lie so I just gave her a slight smile and a noncommittal shrug of my shoulders.

"Well, you don't want to be late your first day, so you better get going. Work was hellish. I think I'm going to have a drink and then head to bed."

"Make sure it's just one drink, Mom," I said, trying not to sound commanding. She was my mother and it wasn't my place to tell her what to do, but I didn't want to see her slip into that depressing state she had right after the divorce where a bottle of practically any alcohol was her best friend.

"Don't nag, Molly," she almost snapped. "I'm perfectly capable of having a drink."

"Fine. Well, I got to get going. See you later," I walked out the door, leading Boomer to the backyard were it was fenced in. "Be good, Boom. Try not to bark too much and wake up Mom. We don't need her in a bad mood. I'll come get you right when I get home, ok?" He barked once in response then jumped up almost knocking me over. He was taller than me when he stood up. He got back down, and I shut the gate behind me.

I walked to my black Jeep Grand Cherokee and threw my bag into the back seat. I still couldn't believe that my mom was still making me go even though there was only a month and a half left of school. I could have easily tested out of the classes back at my other school and not even have to worry about starting until next year. My mom, however, thought it would be a good idea to 'make some new friends.' I just hoped I made it through the day.

The drive to the school was simple enough, but, as expected, I was followed by every eye when I stepped onto the parking lot. I quickly found my way to the building with the front office, avoiding everyone's gazes. Once inside, I walked up to the desk where a woman sat behind the nameplate of 'Ms. Cope.' I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. This was really happening.

"Hi," I said, catching her attention. "My name is Molly Bridges. I was told to pick up my schedule here."

"Oh, yes. We've been expecting you!" The way Ms. Cope said this filled me with a sense of dread. I mean, I expected the stares from the students but I had at least hoped the teachers would have fought against making this anymore awkward for me than absolutely necessary. She handed me all sorts of papers: one to get signed by all of my teachers, one with my schedule, and a map of the school to name a few.

After everything was in order, I trudged back out of the building and into the bitter cold. My first class was Trigonometry. I hated math so this was not going to be a great start to my day. When I reached the correct room I was happy to see that it wasn't already full. I went to the teacher to get my slip signed and noticed he had a somewhat overzealous look on his face as if I were something to be gawked at. He pointed me to a desk which, thankfully, was near the back, and I slipped back there as unnoticeable as I could. As I sat down, I noticed almost every eye in the class on me. Some were cutting their eyes back and forth between each other as if trying to decide who should come and talk to me. I tried to ignore them by taking out my notebook and pencil, but felt a tap on my right shoulder. I looked up into a pair of brown eyes.

"Hi. I'm Tanner," the boy with brown eyes said.

"Molly," I replied. As much as I didn't want to be there, I wasn't going to be rude.

"So, how are you liking Forks so far?" he asked with a cocky grin that made me not want to trust him.

"I'm not sure yet, really. We've only been here a few days. I haven't really gotten a feel for everything, I guess."

"Well, as a way to get to know some more people, you should come to First Beach. A bunch of us Forks kids go down and have a bonfire every once in a while. We're having one this weekend," he concluded with a hopeful glint in his eyes.

"Um, sure, I guess," I voiced, slightly uncertain.

"Great," he finished, giving me a wink. He turned back towards the front before he could catch the contorted look on my face. _Did he just wink at me?_

By lunch time, I had met a very nice girl named Jillian that I found out was in my English class and my History class. Thankfully she invited me to eat lunch with her. I had a feeling we could become good friends. She wasn't loud or obnoxious, and didn't seem fake like so many other people I had met before. As I followed her to a table, I could feel almost every eye on me. I tried not to visibly squirm under their intense gazes. For some reason I got the feeling I was walking the mile, walking the mile... I let out a sigh of relief when we finally sat down.

"Molly, this is Jack and Samantha," Jillian introduced me to the two other people sitting at the table.

"Hi, nice to meet you," I said with a smile.

"How are you classes going so far?" Jack asked conversationally.

"Oh, you know, they're--"

"Molly, what's up?" I was rudely interrupted by Tanner coming to lean beside me on the table.

"Well, I'm kind of in the middle of a conversation, actually," I replied as nicely as I could. Tanner was already giving himself the reputation with me that he was an extremely annoying person.

"Oh, well I just wanted to double check on First Beach this weekend," he said while shooting a glare at Jack who was sitting across from me.

"I already said I would be there," I said, already losing my patience with him.

"Cool. I'll catch you later then." He winked at me before walking off towards a table filled with girls and jock looking guys. _Again with the winking!_

"What's his deal?"

"Tanner?" Samantha joined in the conversation. "Well, he's the Mr. Popular around here. He's nice enough, really, but he can get kind of rude and obnoxious. Judging from the glare he shot at Jack here, I'm guessing he was trying to send the message that he saw you first."

"Saw me first?" I asked disbelievingly.

"Yeah, that's part of the obnoxious part. He likes to stake his claim on things," Jillian voiced, with a roll of her eyes.

"Great. Just what I need," I mirrored Jillian's eye roll. "So are you guys going to First Beach this weekend?" I picked up the conversation again.

The rest of the school day passed pretty uneventfully. Luckily none of my teachers had passed out homework assignments and for that I was grateful. I was still more than ready to head home when I heard the last bell of the day. The first thing I did when I pulled my jeep into the driveway was go grab Boomer.

"Hey, Boomer!" I was greeted with a sloppy lick and a bark. I let him out of the gate and followed him up onto the porch. I carefully sat my things by the door, trying not to wake my mother. I put a finger to my lips showing Boomer to be quiet. He walked slowly to the stairs with the only sound being the soft clicks his nails made on the hardwood. I smiled at how well behaved he was. Knowing he hated being cooped up in the fence almost as much as I hated being cooped up in school, I quickly changed so we could go out for a run.

"You had better not run off again," I told him sternly. "You'll be in big trouble this time." He lowered his ears slightly and whined at being reprimanded. "Don't whine about it. Just don't do it again." I gave his head a rub and he perked up again.

We started off on our run and I noticed it was a bit colder today. There was a light wind blowing and after just a few minutes my nose was already going numb. I could have turned back and gone home, but I knew I would get over the cold soon enough. I felt Boomer tug slightly on his leash when we were about to turn the bend in the road where he ran off last time.

"Don't, Boomer." He stopped tugging and ran by my side again. As we took the turn I saw the same guys standing in the yard as I had yesterday, with a few additions. I was planning on just running by since I didn't really know them when one of them called my name.

"Hey Molly!" I slowed and turned and saw Jacob wave a large hand over his head. I waved back, and he motioned for me to come over. Boomer was all for it and began to lead the way.

"Hey, guys," I greeted when we got close enough.

"I wanted to introduce you to some more of our friends," he said with a warm grin. He gestured to a couple that had just stepped off the porch, "That's Sam and Emily. This is their place, but it might as well be ours because we're here so much." They all laughed and I couldn't stop the smile from spreading across my face.

"Nice to meet you."

"Then over there," he gestured for another guy that had been standing with Quil and Embry to come over. I recognized him as the guy that was standing on the porch yesterday. "We have Paul."

"Um, hi," Paul said almost as if he was searching for something to say due to nerves. He extended his hand, and there was a sparkle in his dark brown eyes that I liked.

"Hi. I'm Molly," I said with an almost involuntary smile, reaching out and shaking his enormous hand. I was met with a shock as it was very warm.

"You're hands are freezing!" Paul said. That could make up for why his seemed so warm. My hands were beginning to grow a little numb from the cold. "You look really cold," he continued with an odd amount of concern in his eyes. His voice, on the other hand, sounded almost a little angry.

"It's not that bad," I said, a little thrown off by the anger in his voice. I shoved my hands, along with the end Boomer's leash, into my jacket pockets. I wondered why Paul could be so warm when it was so cold out. I looked around and noticed all the guys were in short sleeves and cut offs. "Are you guys not cold?"

"Like you said, it's not that bad," Jacob said. I didn't miss the glance that passed between them all. "So have you made some Forks friends yet?"

"Well, I made a couple at school, I think. It went fairly well not counting this guy named Tanner than seemed a little territorial," I noticed Paul start to shake slightly when I mentioned Tanner. "Are you ok?" I could feel my eyebrows furrow in curiosity.

After quick moment, he had stopped shaking almost as suddenly as he had started, but his shoulders seemed rigid, "Yeah, I'm fine."

I decided to let it go. "I hope I won't be spending too much time around Tanner though. He seemed really annoying." I noticed Paul's shoulders relax again almost in relief. "I suppose I will have to spend time with him this weekend though, because I said I would go to First Beach for a bonfire thing." I glanced down at my watch and saw that it was almost 5. I needed to get home before Mom woke up. "Sorry to run, guys, but I have to get home. It was nice meeting you," I said with a wave to Sam and Emily. I was about to say the same to Paul but he surprised me.

"Can I walk you home?" he asked with a hint of hopefulness.

It caught me off guard. I really wasn't expecting it. I looked around and saw Emily trying to suppress a smile. "Um, sure, I guess so," I said a little uncertainly. An enormous grin broke out across his face and I felt an unexpected tug in my stomach. "See you later, Jacob. Bye, Quil, Embry."

"See you later, Molly," they all yelled back as Paul and I made our way back to the road.

Paul and I walked in silence for a bit with Boomer walking contently in between us, occasionally sniffing Paul who would scratch Boomer's ears. I tried not to look at him too much, but I noticed Paul watching me out of the corner of his eye.

"I think he likes you," I said, breaking the silence.

Paul looked like he was drinking in every word of what I said as if it was something to be remembered. "Yeah. He's a cool dog," Paul responded after a moment.

Then a thought struck me,"Paul, how old are you?"

"I'm 18. How old are you?"

"Seventeen," I responded. He seemed pleased by this. I found myself pleased that he was 18. He and the others look much older.

We were silent again, but it was oddly comfortable. It was like we didn't have to fill up the air between us. There was something strange about Paul. I had only known him about an hour and the way he acted threw me. The way he looked at me, the way he responded to the things I said, the odd amount of concern in his eyes...

"I hope I didn't give you a bad impression yesterday," his voice jerked me from my musings.

"Huh?" I said, confused.

"When I was yelling at Embry. I'm not really mean. I just...have a bit of a bad temper," he finished, scratching the back of his neck and watching me out of the corner of his eye again.

A temper? Tempers are never a good thing, really. Paul did seem nice enough, though. He did offer to walk me home and hadn't started yelling at me yet.

"Oh, no. You didn't," I said with a reassuring smile. Another huge grin crossed his face. I could feel my smile get bigger and turned to look ahead of me before he could notice the blush crossing my cheeks. _Why was I blushing?_ As I looked forward I saw that we were already at my house. I turned down the driveway and Paul followed right behind, walking me all the way to the door.

"Thanks for walking me home," I said, feeling oddly self-conscious all of a sudden. I toyed with the end of Boomer's leash.

"It was no problem," he said with such sincerity I felt my cheeks color again. I hoped it was covered by the pink in my cheeks caused my the cold. The slight smirk on Paul's face made me think otherwise, though.

"I better get inside," I said, motioning towards the door.

"Yeah, go get warm. I don't want you getting sick," there was the concern again. "I'll see you this weekend," he said, as he turned to go.

"You will?" I asked, for some reason not ready to part just yet.

"Yeah," he said turning back towards me. "We usually hang out at First Beach when the Forks kids go down there. You know, just to keep an eye on them."

"Oh, well, I'll see you then."

"See you. Now go inside before you turn into a popsicle."

"Yes, Dad," I said with a roll of my eyes. He just grinned and started making his way down the front steps. I felt that odd tug in my stomach again at his smile as I opened the door. I shut the door and leaned back against it. I couldn't keep a smile from spreading across my face.

There was something strange about Paul indeed.

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**a/n: let me know if you caught the movie reference I made. I hope you liked it. review! much love. **


	3. Chapter 3

**a/n: thank you so much for your reviews! i cannot even begin to tell you how absolutely stoked i am that this story is getting such attention only after 2 chapters! here is chapter three, which i really wanted to have up last night but the electricity went out for 3 HOURS! but it's here and i hope you enjoy it :)**

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I didn't get to go out running the rest of the week. All of a sudden all of my teacher's decided to pile on loads of homework that managed to take up almost every spare second of my time. There was only a month and two weeks left! Didn't teachers realize that students stopped paying attention when school was almost over? Then again, maybe they did realize and this was why they decided to pile on extra work. I stopped trying to figure out the workings of teachers' minds. I guess the only way to truly understand how they worked was to become one, and that was not a path I saw in my future.

As for the students at school, I had come to find in the five days that I have attended that most of them are rather nice. I still mostly stuck with Jillian, Jack, and Samantha. I had learned that Jillian and Samantha played softball on a team at the recreational department in town. They told me sign ups were in a few weeks, and I couldn't wait. I absolutely loved to play softball. I told them that I would sign up to play with them and when the season started we could all go running together. They seemed up for the idea. Apparently there was a rival team from a town over that was really good and had beaten them every year.

"It will be good to have some fresh talent," Samantha had told me. "Just so you know, Molly, Tanner is the assistant coach to our team. He likes to think he can show us girls a thing or two."

"We'll just have to see about that," I had replied with a mischievous grin.

Currently, I was sitting at my dining room table trying to figure out some oddball Trig. functions. It had warmed up surprisingly by the end of the week and looked to be perfect for the beach day that was today. Since it was pretty much pointless to have a bonfire in the middle of the day, most people wouldn't be getting there until later. It was 5:30 now and Mom would be up around 6. I figured that we would be finished with by 6:30 and be at the beach no later than 7, which didn't seem too late or too early to me.

I was able to finish up my Trig homework just as Mom was emerging from her lair. "Hey, Mom," I said, gathering my books from the table and shoving them into my bag.

"Morning," she yawned. "Well, afternoon, evening. Whatever."

"What should we have for supper?" I asked. Mom wasn't much of a cook. Unfortunately, I had inherited that quality from her, so normally I just ate whatever I could find.

"Pizza?" she suggested with a shrug.

"Works for me," I said, grabbing the phone. I placed our order and was told it would be delivered in about 15 minutes. It was fitting in well with my mental schedule I had going.

"You remember I'm going to that bonfire thing, right?" I asked as she settled into the chair on the opposite side of the table. My mom and I didn't really spend all that much time together, so she didn't really care where I went, but I always told her anyway. We definitely weren't the mother-daughter best friends.

"Yeah, I remember. I probably won't be here when you get back. I think I might go check out what kind of stores they have around here before work. What time are you leaving?"

"Probably soon after I get done eating. I'm probably just going to walk there. It shouldn't take too long." True I hadn't ever actually made it to the beach on my runs, but I figured it couldn't be too much farther into La Push than I had made it.

True to their word, the pizza delivery guy was on our porch at 6:15. I tipped him and took the pizza into the house. I piled a couple of pieces on a plate and headed up to my room so I could get ready while I ate. I rummaged through my closet trying to decide what to wear. I wasn't much for impressing people with my fashion sense. I mostly owned t-shirts and jeans. I pulled out a black t-shirt that said:

"Tramps Like Us  
Baby We Were  
Born To Run."

It was one of my favorite Bruce Springsteen shirts. I decided it was as good as anything. I also put on a pair of light jeans and tennis shoes.

"What do you think?" I asked Boomer, who was lying in the middle of my bedroom floor, as I tossed him a pizza crust. He immediately became more interested in the pizza crust than anything I had to say, but I didn't take it personally. After pulling my mess of hair back in messy clip I was ready to go. I glanced at my watch on the way downstairs and saw that I was right on time.

I took Boomer out the back door to the yard and poured some food into his bowl so he wouldn't demolish the house while I was gone, and called out to my mom, "I'm leaving, Mom!"

She stuck her head out of the downstairs bathroom with a toothbrush hanging from her mouth. "Ok. See you later," she said with a wave.

I shut the front door behind me and started my trek down the road. I tried looking at the scenery as I walked but it all once again became a monotonous blur of green. Soon enough, I was passing Sam and Emily's house. I found it oddly lacking without the group of huge guys hanging around in the yard. With that thought I felt that unfamiliar tug again. Paul said he would see me this weekend. What did he mean by that? Was he looking forward to seeing me? No, he doesn't even know me. He was just trying to show me he was nice and not a raving lunatic for yelling at Embry. I was sure he had already forgotten that he even said he would see me this weekend. I mean, I hadn't even seen him or any of the other guys all week.

Why was I even thinking about this? I didn't know him any better than he knew me. I had, however, without realizing it, picked up my pace a little bit.

I was right about the beach not being much farther than Sam and Emily's. I saw a bunch of people hanging around talking in collected groups, as well as people hauling chairs, blankets, and such from the backs of their cars. It looked to me like I had gotten there as things were really starting to get going. I saw a plume of smoke billowing up against the dark blue sky from the middle of a large group of people and figured that's where I should be headed.

I spotted Jillian and gave her a quick wave before making my way over to her. She started heading my direction before I could get too much closer, and pulled me aside by the arm. "Just so you know," she started, "Tanner is looking for you and he has already had one too many, if you know what I mean," she then made a motion toward her mouth like she was drinking something.

"He's drunk? It's only 7 o'clock!" I couldn't believe what she had just said. After watching my mother's downward spiral with alcohol, I had zero tolerance for anyone who drank. "How is that even possible? He's underage!"

"Well, technically, he's not completely drunk yet, but don't worry, by the end of the night I'm sure he will be," Jillian explained with a knowing look. "Some of the older guys bring beer and stuff sometimes. Just be careful around them, and try to stay away from Tanner if you can."

She looped her arm through mine and led me over to where Samantha and Jack her sitting. After spending some time with them, I realized that Samantha and Jack really liked each other. According to Jillian, the only people that didn't know about it was Samantha and Jack! They were sitting beside each other on a log off to the side of the fire away from the large group. I noticed them talking quietly to each other, and when Jack reached up and brushed a strand of Samantha's auburn hair out of her face, I accidentally jerked Jillian to a stop.

"What?" she asked, slightly annoyed.

"We can't go over there!" I, for some reason, whispered. "Jack is flirting with Samantha!"

She looked in their direction then said, "Well, it's about damn time. Come on, let's get something to drink and leave them at it."

At the mention of "drink", I involuntarily balked. Jillian noticed. "Don't worry," she said. "I meant a Coke or something."

I felt my face warm slightly. "Sorry," I mumbled. "I've...just got an issue with drinking."

"No big deal," she said as she continued walking. "We've all got some kind of hang up, right?"

"I guess," I sighed.

We reached a cooler that was sitting a slight way from the fire in attempt to keep it cool for as long as possible. We both delved our hands into the ice until we each came up with something we wanted to drink, then shook the water and ice pieces from our hands.

"But, Molly," a girl named Tiffany sneered. "Don't you want a beer?"

Tiffany was one of the few people at Forks High that I didn't like, and who obviously didn't like me. Jillian had told me it was because Tiffany liked Tanner and was jealous that he was paying attention to me. I for one would have been more than glad to correct Tiffany and let her know that I was not interested in Tanner in the least, but she had made that pretty much impossible by peppering me with snide comments anytime she had the chance.

"No, thanks," I responded civilly. "I don't drink."

"Oh, are you not ready to party with the big kids yet?" Tiffany jutted out her bottom lip in a fake pout, and sloshed her beer.

Deciding to be the bigger person, I was about to just walk around her, but the drinks she had already ingested were apparently making her brave because she stepped in front of me. She looked down at me with a glare and looked as if she was about to say something, but then glanced over my head. "Ugh, here come those big Indian guys," she said instead to the others around us. "They are so scary. I bet they are a bunch of criminals. I mean, just look at them."

At the mention of the La Push guys, my heart began ramming in my chest. I quickly turned and saw that Jacob, Quil, Embry, and Paul -my heart jumped at the sight of him- were talking to a couple of guys down the beach. Then the rest of what Tiffany said caught up with me: '_just look at them_.' I couldn't stand being near her for another second. I grabbed Jillian's arm and stalked off in the direction of the guys.

"I swear, Molly," Jillian began. "If you don't kick her ass soon, then I will."

"Don't worry. She'll get what's coming to her soon enough. Karma's a bitch," I replied with a wink.

"Whose ass are we kicking?" I looked up and saw the guys had made their way over to us before we made it to them. Quil was standing there with a goofy grin on his face, and I assumed he had asked the question.

"We," I motioned to the guys with my hand,"are not kicking anyone's ass. Jillian and I on the other hand..." I trailed off and let them use their imaginations. I noticed Jillian was standing slightly behind me, obviously intimidated by the enormous guys. "Oh! Jillie, this is Quil, Embry, Jacob, and Paul," I pointed to each guy in turn, but for some reason was unable to meet Paul's eyes. _Why am I being such a girl?_ "Guys, this is my friend Jillian."

"Hey," they guys responded. Paul, I noticed, didn't say anything, but was watching me. Once I met his eyes, I couldn't look away. There was something in his eyes that kept me glued to them. Maybe it was the unwavering way he was looking at me, completely without shame.

I heard Jillian, finally back in her element having shaken off her momentary stupor, say, "Nice to meet you guys. You're Quileute, right?" I could tell she was trying to make small talk but I noticed her eyes darting back and forth between me and Paul.

I don't know how long Paul and I stood there just staring at each other before I was finally able to mentally shake myself and tear my eyes away. I saw Jillian try to catch my eye, but I deliberately kept my eyes away from hers. I knew there would be a question there that I couldn't rightfully answer myself.

"Molly," Paul's deep voice caught my attention, and I couldn't help feeling slightly embarrassed as my head immediately snapped in his direction. "Will you go for a walk with me?"

I stood there stunned.

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**a/n: i know what you are thinking : "that's it?! they just started talking!!" but slight cliffies keep us interested, yeah? please review even if it's to say how much you hate me for leaving it here. i always love to know what you're thinking!! i'll try to update soon. love!!**

**PS: if you are wondering about Molly's 'Tramps Like Us' shirt, I have one just like it and it really is one of my favorite shirts. i got it from a bruce springsteen concert and just had to stick it in!! :D also the words are from the song "Born to Run" you should check it out! more love!!**


	4. Chapter 4

**a/n: I am over the shell shock of reading Breaking Dawn and can now update. If anyone would like to, feel free to PM me about the book. None of my friends read Twilight (shocking i know) so i have no one to rant about the new book to. Well, this is the longest chapter i have ever written! i really hope you like it and be sure to review. thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews i received for the last chapter. you guys rock!! love!**

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I don't know why it shocked me so much that Paul had asked me to go for a walk with him. It just did. Maybe the real shock was at how much I wanted to go for a walk with him. I didn't want to be rude, however, and leave Jillian since she had abandoned everyone else to hang out with me.

"Uh, well--"

"Of course she does!" Jillian interrupted me and gave me a shove in Paul's direction.

I stumbled slightly and turned to give her an incredulous look. She simply gave me one in return. I huffed slightly and turned back towards Paul who was watching me closely.

"Sure. Let's go," I replied.

His wonderful grin broke across his face at my acceptance. Did I just think _wonderful grin_?! Something is seriously wrong with me. I didn't dwell on it too long as Paul started walking down the beach away from the crowds. Following beside him, I noticed just how much taller than me he actually was. I didn't even make it to his shoulder.

"So, you didn't really strike me as a 'long walks along the beach' kind of guy," I teased, breaking the silence.

He looked down at me with a smirk. "I can be if the mood hits me," he replied, playing along. "I didn't see you around La Push much this week. Did we scare you off so easily?" He said it with my same teasing tone, but there was a slight undercurrent that made me want to take him half seriously.

"Hardly. There doesn't seem to be anything remotely scary about you guys," I thought I noticed his eyes tighten a little, but I wasn't sure. "Well, besides the fact that you are all huge. I mean, is there something in the water in La Push?"

I expected him to laugh, but he didn't. Instead he mumbled,"There's something..." He said it so quietly, though, I knew I wasn't supposed to hear. "So have you made a lot of friends yet?"

I chose to go along with his not-so-subtle topic change. "A few good ones. Don't worry, you guys are still the favorites so far," I replied, trying to lighten the mood again.

At this he did laugh. I found myself marveling in how deep and warm it sounded. "Good," he said. "I'm glad." He looked at me when he said it, and I was thankful for the covering darkness so he couldn't see my blushing cheeks.

We walked along in silence for a while. I noticed how quiet his footsteps were as he walked. It surprised me. I figured someone so big would have steps that sounded like thunder. I could hear my own steps crunch on the rocks underfoot and could barely hear his.

"Can I ask you something?" He asked unexpectedly.

"You just did," I replied somewhat out of habit. I heard him groan and groaned myself. "Sorry. My mom is always on me about being a smart alack. But, yes, you can ask me a question."

"What would you say if I said I wanted to spend more time with you?" He didn't really look at me when he asked but I could tell he was shooting glances at me from the corner of his eye.

_YES!_ I wanted to scream, but kept myself under control. My heart soared at what he said, but I didn't want him to know that. "Well," I began, "I would probably ask 'why?'"

"I want to get to know you," he answered automatically.

"And what makes you worthy of my time?"

I could tell from his slight smile that he caught my teasing. "What can I do to prove myself to you?" he asked sincerely.

I had to think of something. As much as I wanted to spend more time with him, I really didn't know him. Was he different from any other random guy? "Ok. I'll ask you a question, and if you get it right you may actually be worth my time," I bumped him with my shoulder playfully.

"Ok," he chuckled. "Ask away."

"What color are my eyes?" I said the question quickly and turned away from him towards the water and closed my eyes. I knew it was slightly pointless since it was pretty dark out since the sun had gone down and he couldn't see my eyes, but I did it for posterity.

"Well," he started and I felt myself hoping he would get it right. "They are the darkest of blue on the edge and a bluish-gray in the middle. The color radiates from the center like a splash of water adding different bits of blue and the slightest hints of green. If anyone ever wanted to see the ocean all they would have to do is look into your eyes."

I opened my eyes, but didn't turn back around. That was not what I had been expecting. I would have settled for blue. My heart was stuck in my throat. No one ever paid that much attention to me, let alone spoke to me like that. I was about to turn around when I felt him move closer.

"And you wear contacts," his breath tickled my cheek as he whispered in my ear. I shivered but didn't know if it was from the breeze that blew off the water or from the feather light touch of his breath. My heart was telling me it was the latter. "So do I pass?"

I slowly turned back around, and he was so close we were almost touching. "You passed," I told him, only able to get my voice barely above a whisper, if that. I stared up into his deep brown eyes as he stared back into mine. I could feel the heat coming from his body, and the breeze coming from the water made me want to lean into him. I could feel goosebumps rise on my arms. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't look away. Judging from the blazing look in Paul's eyes, I would say the same thing about him.

"Molly!" A yell broke the spell that we seemed to be under. I self-consciously took a small step away from Paul. He did the same, but he was more exasperated and frustrated than embarrassed. I looked toward the voice and saw it was Jill.

"I guess we had better get back, huh?" I said, somewhat awkwardly. Paul just nodded his head and we began to walk back to the gathering of people. I hadn't realized we were off completely by ourselves with everyone else just visible.

"I'll let you get back to your friends," Paul said when we made it to Jillian.

"I'll talk to you later, Paul," I said, not wanting him to go.

"Count on it," he said with a smile before walking back to the other guys.

I turned toward Jillie and she had her arms crossed and one eyebrow raised. "What?" I asked, as I walked back toward the crowd. I noticed someone had brought a CD player and there was now music blasting and people dancing.

"You know what. You've only been here a week and you already have a really hot guy!" Jillie exclaimed.

"I do not. I barely know him. Besides, we're just friends," I tried to play off with a shrug.

"Bitch, please," she replied with a knowing look. I laughed at her response. I was really beginning to love the way Jillian said what she wanted. I could see us being really good friends in the long run. "With the way he was looking at you, that boy has a lot more than friendship on his mind."

"You think?" I asked, not really wanting to get my hopes up.

"Girl, this is the person that's had to look at the lovey looks Jack's been giving Samantha for years. There is definitely something there. And," she continued, elbowing me in the side, "with the way you were looking at him, I would have to say you wouldn't mind that much if friendship was the last thing he wanted."

"Shut up," I told her with a laugh. "Well, Miss Relationship-Expert, if we looked so "lovey" why did you interrupt us?"

"Hey, I don't know this guy. He could have been trying to lure you into the darkness to kidnap you."

"Excuse me, but aren't you the one that pushed me to go with him?" I countered.

"Yes, but it's not like I let you wonder too far off now did I? Oh my lord," she said suddenly.

"What is it?" I asked concerned.

"Look!" She pointed to where some people were dancing to a slow song. I followed her gaze and saw Jack and Samantha dancing.

"Aww! That is so cute!" I exclaimed.

"Well, it looks like this bonfire was just the night for love!" Jillie said, dragging out the word 'love' and wiggling her hips.

"Riiiight," I said with a roll of my eyes and a laugh.

"Molly, there you are," I heard the slurred words coming from behind me.

Jillian and I both looked at each other, a slight gleam of panic was mirrored in her eyes as well as mine. With all of our attention on Jack and Samantha we didn't notice Tanner come up behind us. I took a deep breath and turned towards him.

"Yeah, here I am," I said with a shrug, as if I hadn't been blatantly trying to stay away from him all night. I watched him for second as he glanced down at the red plastic cup in his hand. Noticing it was empty, he threw it to the ground and took a step towards me.

"I've been looking all over for you," he said with his words slightly slurring together again. Just by looking in his eyes you could see he was extremely drunk. I had to hand it to him though, for someone so drunk he did handle himself well. His eyes and slurring words were the only thing that truly gave him away. That scared me.

"Yeah, well, I don't hang out near beer kegs, thanks," I said, trying to convey a point. I knew it was useless, though.

"Come dance with me," he grabbed my arm and started toward the group of people dancing to another slow paced song.

Jillian moved as if to grab my other arm, but I stopped her with a slight shake of my head. I could handle it. I didn't want to end up making Tanner angry. Drunkenness and anger didn't mix well. She looked torn but nodded her head while pointing at me to let me know she was watching. I nodded back at her, grateful.

When we reached the group, Tanner automatically put his hands at my waist. I wanted to flinch away, but resisted. I put my hands more at the top of his arms than at his shoulders and kept some space between us trying to make it seem less...intimate.

Soon, however, Tanner slid his hands around my lower back trying to close the distance between us. I tensed and tried to lean away from him. I could feel and smell his alcohol tainted breath on my face. It was disgusting.

"I saw you with that big Indian guy," he said out of the blue.

"So what?" It wasn't any of his business who I hung out with.

"So," he said dragging it out like a child, "I didn't like you being so near him. I saw you first."

"Despite what you may thing, Tanner, I am _not_ yours," he was really irritating me and I tried getting some more distance between us.

"You think that now."

"Tanner, don't," I tried as he continued to pull me.

"Come on, Molly. I'm not doing anything," was his indifferent reply. He leaned down and smelled at my hair. I cursed myself for being so short.

When his hands started rubbing my back and toying with the bottom of my shirt, I had had enough. "Seriously, Tanner. Stop it," I tried to push myself away from him but he tightened his hold. I didn't try to struggle or cause a scene. I said through clenched teeth,"Let me go. I don't want to dance with you anymore."

"Just go with it," Tanner replied in a low voice.

I looked around his shoulder to where Jillian had been standing, but she wasn't there. _Where was she?!_ I tried to push myself away from him again as I started to feel a prick of panic starting to set in. My heart began to thud against my ribs and I swallowed hard. Tanner looked down at me, and I kept my face smooth, free of emotion. I felt his hold on me lessen and I thought he was coming to his senses. I knew I was wrong, however, when his face started getting closer to mine.

I tried to take advantage of his loosened grip and broke free of his arms, but he grabbed my wrist hard, causing me to wince. I opened my mouth to yell but before I could even make a noise, I was out of Tanner's grasp as he was being jerked away from me.

I looked up to see a furious looking Paul glaring down at a terrified Tanner. Not only were Paul's hands shaking violently but his entire frame. If I wasn't so happy he had just saved me, I probably would have been terrified. I spotted Jillian running towards me along with the rest of Paul's friends. She bypassed Paul and headed straight for me as the others tried to calm Paul.

"I'm sorry!" she said, hugging me. "I saw you trying to push him off, and I knew I wouldn't be able to get him off you by myself and Paul was close by-"

"Jillie," I interrupted her ranting,"It's ok. I'm fine. Thank you, actually." I hugged her back.

Over her shoulder I saw Paul take a step toward Tanner as the others tried to keep him back, and I knew I had to stop him. I couldn't let him beat Tanner to a pulp, as much as I wanted it.

"Paul!" I sidestepped Jillie and made my way quickly to him. "Don't." I grabbed his arm and his shaking settled slightly. He immediately looked at me. I saw the fury burning in his beautiful eyes. Very beautiful eyes. "Don't," I said again in almost a whisper, knowing I had his attention.

His blazing eyes softened slightly but were still intense. He was breathing deeply and looked back at the petrified Tanner then at me as if deliberating.

"Please?" I mouthed. He nodded reluctantly.

Before anyone else could do anything to stop me I made my way to Tanner. He looked at me like he knew I would come back, but it quickly changed when he saw the pissed look on my face. I cocked my arm back and punch him on the jaw. Pain shot through my knuckles but the way Tanner's hand shot to his face and the way he wailed made me quickly forget my pain in satisfaction. I heard the howls of laughter from the La Push guys behind me and even Jillian's bubbly laugh.

I quickly jumped back and felt warm, large hands on my shoulders as Tanner doubled over and threw up. I quickly clapped a hand over my own mouth and choked back a gag. I couldn't stand when people puked. At least it added to Tanner's discomfort.

In one swift motion, Paul had his arm around my shoulders and was leading me away from the beach. "How did you get here?" he asked quickly.

"I walked," I answered quietly. I noticed him grimace as if he was afraid I was going to say that. Behind us I distinctly heard Jillian's voice calling Tanner a dirtbag. Paul continued us on until we were at the road, and when we could barely hear the noise from the beach anymore Paul took his arm from around my shoulders. I shivered as the cool night air hit me, and wished he would put his extremely warm arm back around me.

"Are you ok?" he asked a few moments later, sounding much calmer and very concerned, as we walked down the road.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I told him. "I don't handle vomit well." I held my wrist and flexed my fingers from where Tanner had grabbed me and I had punched his face.

"Molly, please don't say you are fine if you aren't," his voice sounded pained.

"Paul, really I'm fine. It was my own fault-"

"It wasn't your fault-"

"-I should have known better," I continued on as if he hadn't interrupted me.

"-it was that asshole's fault," Paul continued on just the same until it was like we were having two separate conversations.

"I was stupid-"

"He just needs to keep his damn hands off of you-"

"-I knew he was drunk."

"-I almost killed him," my subconscious noticed Paul was now practically growling.

"Lord, how could I have been so stupid?!" I pressed my palm against my forehead.

"Molly!" Paul finally yelled, catching my attention. I turned to look at him as he stopped walking. He looked like he was searching for something to say as his mouth opened and closed repeatedly but nothing came out. The next thing I knew I was being crushed against his chest and my feet had left the ground. I was shocked at first, but Paul didn't seem to notice that my arms were hanging limply at my sides still. He buried his face on my shoulder, and I slowly wrapped my arms around his neck and rested my head on his shoulder. It felt very nice. I could feel his warmth through his t-shirt and his strong arms that were wrapped around my waist made me feel more safe than I ever had.

"Are you absolutely certain you are alright?" he asked in a voice so soft I wouldn't have thought it possible for him.

"Yes," I whispered back. "Thank you for saving me, Paul." He just tightened his arms around me in response.

We stood, well he stood since I was still off of the ground, like that for a few blissful moments, perfectly content. I did have a passing though that Paul's arms must be getting tired from holding me up, but he didn't say anything or move.

"Gosh, you're tiny," he finally spoke in that same soft voice.

This caused me to chuckle lightly in his ear. It was true. I mean, I was small compared to most people what with my lack of height and small bone structure, but compared to Paul, it could very well have looked like he was holding up a child instead of someone just a year younger than himself. For some reason that made me feel even safer with him.

He slowly pulled away and I reluctantly unlocked my arms from his neck. I let my hands slid down his arms as he set me back on the ground and was once again shocked at how warm he really was.

"Paul, do you have a fever or something?" I asked concerned. "You feel really warm."

"I'm fine, don't worry about. It's a Quileute thing," the way he answered let me know not to pursue it further. "How's your hand?" he asked with a smirk while cradling my small hand in his much larger ones. "You really decked him," he said it with the air of a very high compliment.

"It's fine. A little sore, but well worth it with the way he sobbed," I said with a laugh, earning one from Paul as well.

"For real," Paul said with a smile. I expected him to let my hand drop back to me, but instead he closed one of his hands around it and started walking again. I was amazed at how perfectly my hand fit into his as I wrapped my fingers around it despite the vast size difference. My heart started thumping rapidly in my chest again as we walked down the road hand in hand.

"So, you said you wanted to get to know me," I reminded him as we walked. "What do you want to know?"

"What? Don't you want to get to know me too?" he asked, feigning hurt.

"Yeah," to my intense embarrassment I replied breathlessly. I quickly cleared my throat and recovered, "How about we ask each other questions and whatever we asked we have to answer as well, sound fair?"

"Sounds good. So what's your favorite color? Orange," he asked and then answered for himself.

"Blue. When's your birthday? Mine is March 11."

"April 29. Um, what's your favorite food? Mine's hotdogs."

"Really?" I asked. I don't think I had ever known someone whose favorite food, out of all food, was hotdogs.

"Yeah, I can eat like 12 at once. Of course, I can eat practically 12 of anything at once," he added as an afterthought.

"Really?" I asked again, shocked.

"What? I'm a big guy. Now are you going to answer the question or not?"

"Oh, uh, well neither me or my mom can cook, and I mean at all, so it's probably something you don't have to cook like...," I had to think for a moment, "Cheese!"

"Cheese?" he asked incredulously.

It went on like that for the rest of the walk to my house. One of us asking questions and telling answers with the other sometimes clarifying questions or answers or just simply laughing at what the other had to say. ("What's so funny?! Wonder Woman really had a thing going with that Lasso of Truth and everything!" Paul had defended while I all but passed out from laughter. Of course he did rebuke his very joking answer with a more manly superhero answer.) It was great. When we finally turned onto my driveway and Boomer's barking could be heard in welcoming me home, I didn't want to let go of Paul's hand.

"Well," I started when we reached the porch steps, "Thanks for everything, Paul. I mean it," I finished sincerely.

"No problem. Just please be careful. I don't like leaving you here all alone."

"How did you know I was alone?" I didn't remember mentioning that my mom worked third shift.

"Oh, uh," he seemed to be grasping for an answer,"You told me. When we asked the question about what our moms did."

"Oh," I remembered saying she was a nurse, but I didn't remember saying when she worked. I shrugged it off, maybe I had told him.

"Have a good night, Paul."

"Good night, Molly," he said, as he let my hand slip from his. "Sweet dreams." He turned to go down the driveway and I turned to go into the house.

Once again my smile was so big I thought my face would never go back to normal. My heart fluttered and my stomach knotted as I finally let in my realization:

_I like Paul. I really, really like him._

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**a/n: well there you have it. i really hope you liked it. i didn't really mean for it to be this long but i couldn't find the right place to cut it off. review!! love!!**


	5. Chapter 5

**a/n: sorry it's taken me so long to update. i've just started college (it's going well...i think), so i've been pretty busy getting used to it. thank you so much for those of you who sent me PM about your Breaking Dawn thoughts and thank you so so so so much for your wonderful reviews! you guys are awesome! well i hope you enjoy this chapter. love!**

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I was awoken early the next morning by someone knocking on the door. So it wasn't really early, almost afternoon in fact, but I hadn't gotten much sleep last night due to a certain guy invading my thoughts. I was wondering who would be at the door on a Sunday, when I heard voices. I recognized my mother's and then heard some gruff male voice. I couldn't make out what they were saying. Boomer could be heard from the backyard barking at the intruders. I briefly wondered why my mom would be up so soon, but then remembered that Sundays were her day off, so she probably wanted to be up so she could actually sleep tonight.

I threw my covers back and was about to get off the bed when I heard another noise from outside. It was a beeping sound like that of a school bus going in reverse. I quickly made my way to my window and saw a mover's van backing into my driveway. I was puzzled by this because I thought we had gotten everything unpacked already, then I remembered that we still didn't have a television or my computer. It shocked me that I hadn't noticed I was lacking these things before...I guess I just had other things on my mind. Still, the van looked a little large to be carrying our electronics.

I moved from the window and changed out of my pajamas into some day clothes and went to the bathroom to put my hair in a ponytail and put in my contacts. I winced when I curled my hand around the hairbrush. I looked down and saw that I had deep blue bruises on my knuckles and the events of last night once again came back to me. I shuddered as I thought about Tanner's drunken breath on my face, but then smiled as I thought of Paul holding me against his warm chest.

"Molly!" my mother's voice calling me from downstairs roused me from my musings. I quickly descended the stairs and found her standing in the doorway of the front door. I noticed the warmth from yesterday had gratefully carried over to today.

"Yeah?" I said, looking around her toward the movers. They were piling boxes in the middle of the driveway.

"We have a bit of a problem..." she trailed off for a moment.

"What kind of problem?" I looked away from her again and noticed larger items being extracted from the van's interior. It took me a moment to realize what the things were. A full-sized pool table and pieces of the sectional sofa. Things from our old house with my dad. "Mom? What is that stuff doing here?"

"Well that's stuff we got in the divorce settlement," she said with a wave of her hand as if that wasn't that problem.

"But you hate pool..." I said, not fully understanding.

"Yes, Molly, I know that," she snapped. "But as long as your father doesn't have it, then I'm fine. The problem here is that apparently these are only delivery men. Not movers. Of course this is all your father's fault. He's the one that had to have it sent from our- his house. You and I are going to have to figure out a way to move that gargantuan stuff down in the basement room."

I tried to picture myself and my mom trying to move that stuff by ourselves. All the scenarios I tried to see ended up with me being squashed under the pool table or under one of the pieces of the L-shaped sectional sofa. While I was trying to use my problem solving skills to figure out a way to maneuver the awkward objects, the delivery men finished unloading and, after Mom signed a slip from one of them, they were gone.

We stood staring at the piles of boxes (I had a feeling there was more things in those boxes than I had originally thought after learning of my mother's "as long as your father doesn't have it" attitude), the pool table, pieces of sectional, and other miscellaneous objects that were now piled in the driveway. If only we had a few muscular guys...

I smirked as I had a thought. A few muscular, tall, _Quileute_ guys...I ran upstairs, leaving my mom on the porch, and grabbed my keys. I passed her again on the way out the door.

"Molly, where are you going?!" she shouted at I opened the door to my Jeep.

"Don't worry, Mom. I have a plan. I'll be right back!" I hopped in, threw the car in reverse, and carefully maneuvered around the obstacles and out of the driveway.

I headed toward La Push, hoping and praying that, since I only knew where Sam and Emily lived, the guys would be there. I took the curve and tried to crane my neck to see if there was any sign of them yet even though I still couldn't fully see the house. I let out a jubilant sigh of relief when I once again saw the guys lounging around on the porch and in the yard. Now the only thing left was to try to get them to agree.

I parked my Jeep on the side of the road, and climbed out. I didn't need to catch their attention because they were already watching me make my way toward them.

"Hey, Molly," Embry said when I was within earshot.

"Hey, guys," I waved at Embry, Quil, Jacob, Paul (my heart betrayingly skipped a beat), Sam, Emily, and some other guy that looked about the others' age.

"Hi, I'm Jared," the guy I had never seen introduced himself. "You must be Molly. I've heard a lot about you from Paul."

_Paul talked about me?_ I managed to keep my blush at bay. "Nice to meet you," I said back, keeping my eyes away from Paul.

"Sorry, I haven't been able to meet you sooner. I'm usually not here when you are around."

"Yeah," Embry called in a taunting voice. "He's usually with _Kim_." I assumed that Kim was Jared girlfriend.

Instead of looking embarrassed about it, however, Jared had a twinkle spark in his eye and pretty much sighed,"Yeah. With Kim." By the look on his face I knew I was correct in my assumption that she was his girlfriend, and he must love her. I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face.

"Would you like some lunch?" Emily asked me kindly.

"Thanks for the offer, but I actually came to ask a favor of the guys," I turned more toward the boys with a hopeful expression on my face.

"What do you need?" Paul asked, speaking to me for the first time. The tone of his voice gave off a feeling that he would do anything I asked of him in a heartbeat, but maybe I was imagining it.

"Well, my mother and I are in a bit of a predicament. Some more stuff was delivered this morning and it's huge. Unfortunately for us, the men that delivered it were only delivery men and not movers. Seeing as I'm so tiny as it is, I was wondering if maybe you guys would be willing to help move some stuff of us," I finished with a hopeful grin.

"Well, I'm rather busy today," Quil started, but was smacked on the back of the head by Paul. "Ow! Geez, I was just kidding! Of course we'll help."

"Great," I breathed with relief. "Thanks. You guys can ride with me, if we can squeeze your gigantic selves into my Jeep."

"Shotgun!" Embry yelled, but Paul shot him a look and Embry backed off. "Fine. You can have it."

Together we walked to my Jeep. Paul climbed in the front passenger seat (pushing the seat back to give room for his long legs), Jacob and Quil sprawled themselves out across the backseat, and Embry and Jared opened the back hatch and sat in the back with their legs hanging out the back of the Jeep. I turned the Jeep around and started back towards my house.

"Just so you guys know," I started,"My mom is kinda...crazy. There's no telling what she will say at any given moment, so try not to pay too much mind to her."

"Should we be scared?" Paul asked with a smirk.

"Nah. She's as harmless as I am."

"Well, I heard about you cracking that guy last night, Molly, so maybe we should be afraid!" Jared called and they all laughed as they remembered Tanner's face while I blushed and flexed my bruised knuckles over the steering wheel.

My movement caught Paul's eye and he swiftly grabbed my hand from the wheel causing the Jeep to swerve slightly as I tried to grab the wheel with my other hand.

"Paul!" I yelled. "Don't do that!"

"Did you get those bruises from that jerk?" he demanded. The others had gotten suddenly quiet.

"Yes, I got it from _hitting_ that jerk."

"Not those. Those," he turned my arm over.

I glanced quickly from the road to look and there were fainter bruises on the underside of my wrist from Tanner that I hadn't noticed before. I wrenched my arm from Paul's grasp, placing my hand back on the wheel, and turned my eyes back to the road. "Don't worry about it." He didn't need to. They were just bruises, and Tanner had been drunk.

"Don't worry? He hurt you!" Paul shouted.

"Chill out, Paul!" I shouted back. If there was one thing I hated in the world, it was getting yelled at, especially by people who had no right to yell at me. "I didn't even notice the bruises. They aren't serious."

"Yeah, Paul, why don't you calm down a bit," someone from the back said, using the mental-patient voice again.

I heard Paul huff from my side, and I clenched my jaw. Suddenly needing some breathing room, I pushed my foot harder on the accelerator so we would get back sooner.

I turned into my driveway and parked the Jeep at the end so I wouldn't have to maneuver my way through the boxes and stuff again. I cut the engine as the guys piled out of my car. I noticed that my mom must have gone back inside and everything was exactly as the delivery men had left it. Jacob, Quil, Embry and Jared all started walking down the driveway and I was about to follow suit when Paul called after me.

"Molly," he said.

I turned back towards him, "Yeah?"

He walked over to me and I could see regret in his eyes. "I'm sorry I yelled. I just don't like the idea of you being hurt."

"Well, you shouldn't worry about it. I can take care of myself." I'd been doing it for years since my parents forgot they had a daughter in the midst of their self-absorbed problems.

"Yeah. Just like how you were taking care of yourself last night when that guy was trying to force himself on you," Paul shot back, his infamous temper flaring.

"Oh please," my own temper coloring my words, "I could have handled it. I just made a stupid mistake." I made to walk away again, but this time Paul grabbed my hand.

"Molly," he practically groaned. "I don't want to fight with you. I just worry about you."

_Why?_ I wondered. "You don't know me well enough to worry about me, Paul." _But you know him well enough to _like_ him?_ a voice in the back of my head chastised.

"But I do," his voice became more gentle and he rubbed the back of my hand with his thumb.

I once again noticed how perfectly our hands fit together, like they were made for each other, and I knew I couldn't stay mad at him. "Fine. You're forgiven. You don't have to worry, you know."

"You don't have to try to be so brave," he returned, his eyes staring deep into my own.

Our moment was interrupted, however, by a shout from one of the guys, "Hey! Are we going to do this sometime today?"

I reluctantly pulled my hand away from Paul's scorching one, and made my way down the driveway with him beside me. Jacob's shout must have alerted my mother of our presence because she came out the door and stood on the porch then.

"Molly," she said slowly. I could tell she was taking in the enormous size of the guys (Jared was just as big as the others. There _must_ be something in the water in La Push...).

"Mom," I started, deciding to make introductions quickly. "These are some of my friends I've been hanging out with. Paul, Jared, Jacob, Embry, and Quil." I pointed to each in turn and they waved amiably back at my mom. "They've said they would help us move this stuff."

"Uh huh," Mom said, eying me warily. I didn't exactly know what the look was for, so I just let it pass. "Well, that's very nice of them. We better get this stuff inside before it's starts raining." She moved from the porch and grabbed one of the lighter boxes and carried it inside.

I turned to the guys to start delegating jobs. "Ok. Well, the pool table and the sectional sofa go down in the basement room, as well as the extra tv. Seeing as none of the other boxes are labeled, we can just set them in the living room to be sorted through later. Does that work with everyone?" I knew none of them would object. I mean, it's my stuff and my house.

As expected, they all assented and began grabbing boxes with ease. They must have been lighter than I thought. When some of them had been paraded into the house, I noticed one with my name on it in my father's distinct handwriting.

"Do you need some help with that?" Paul asked as I bent to retrieve it.

"No. I got it," I said, thinking nothing of mine was that heavy. I realized, however, that I was wrong in that assumption. "Ok, yeah you can help me."

I noticed Paul had a smirk on his face from watching me try to lift the box to no avail. He bent down and easily lifted the box from the ground as if it were nothing more than a box of feathers. I glared at him, and he laughed. "Come on, you can take that one to my room since we know it's my stuff. At least, I think it is."

I led him up the stairs to my room, thankful for the fact that there was nothing embarrassing laying about. "Just sit it by the desk, please." Paul easily sat it in the floor. I tried not to notice him surveying my room, so I opened the box, trying to figure out what weighed so much. "Yes!" I exclaimed when I saw what was on top.

"What?" Paul asked, turning back to me.

"Smile!" I said, right before pressing the shutter button on my camera, causing a bright flash in his face.

"Thanks," he said sarcastically, rubbing his eyes.

Everything else in the box was camera related items. My tripod, my computer, and photo editing software along with video software. I loved taking pictures and videos. I couldn't believe that I hadn't noticed these things were missing. Sadly, I would have to wait to play with my things later.

When we made it back downstairs, I saw the smaller piece of the sectional disappearing down into the basement and Jared and Embry carrying the pool table closely behind. "Are you guys sure that stuff isn't too heavy?"

"Don't worry, Molly, this is no trouble," Jared said as if it were no big deal at all.

Paul followed after them and I was about to when my mom called me back. "Molly, can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," I said to her, then to the guys, "I'll be down in a minute so we can rearrange everything."

I walked into the kitchen where my mom was leaning against the counter. "What's up?"

"Don't 'what's up' me. What was that?" she snapped as soon as I came in.

"What was what?" I asked, thoroughly confused.

"Those guys. That's who you've been hanging out with? Five, much older guys?" I now understood the look she had given me earlier.

"Geez, Mom, they're my friends. And they aren't 'much older'. Just a year."

"Well, I don't like it," she crossed her arms over her chest.

"What's not to like?" I could hear my voice rising as I became increasingly pissed off.

"I don't want my daughter hanging around with five guys all the time," her tone rising to match mine. "We don't need people knowing you are that kind of a girl. Forever your father's daughter!"

"_That kind of girl_?" I yelled. "Oh, so just because Dad cheated on you and I have guy friends that makes me a whore? What the hell, Mom?!"

"I don't have time for this. I have a date tonight and I need to get ready."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?"

She shot me a glare. "I don't need that tone from you, young lady." And with that she breezed past me.

I was still livid, then I remembered the guys waiting downstairs. I cursed under my breath as I made my way down the stairs. I turned into the room and saw them all looking at me. I knew it was too much to hope that they hadn't heard. "Yes, my mom apparently thinks I'm a whore, but don't worry about it." I looked around the room and saw that they had arranged the room with the pool table at one end of the room near the sliding glass doors that led out into the backyard, the extra tv was against the side wall, and the L-shaped sectional sofa had been put together in front of the tv. "This looks good," I said, without really looking at any of them. "Thanks a lot, guys. You can stay and hang out if you want. Seriously, don't mind my mom."

"Well, I've got to get to Kim's," came Jared's answer, who was avoiding my gaze as much as I was avoiding his.

"I've got to babysit Claire," Quil replied. I vaguely wondered who Claire was.

"And Embry and I have got to work on my car," Jacob said, shifting nervously from one foot to the other. Nothing like your mother yelling that you are a whore to make things awkward between your new friends.

"Ok. That's fine," I didn't really blame them. Hell, I would be leaving too if I were them. "Do you guys need a ride back?"

"No, we can get back quick enough. See you later, Molly."

They said their goodbyes then slipped out the sliding glass door into the backyard so as not to have to brave another chance meeting with my mom. Boomer greeted them jovially when they entered the backyard, and then they were gone.

I turned back from the door, and nearly jumped when I noticed someone still in the room. _Paul_. I didn't want to meet his eyes, so I tried to find something interesting to look at. I picked up one of the pool balls and started rolling it in my hands. _Great, I find a guy that I like and could potentially like me, and my mom has to yell that I'm a slut while he's here_. I waited for his excuse to leave too.

I felt his warm hand under my chin as he tilted my face upwards to look at him. I found myself once again staring into his deep eyes.

"I'll stay," he said.

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**a/n: oooh what's gonna happen? let me know what you think! love!!  
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	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: just a reminder, i've made a myspace for my fanfiction account. see profile for me details. Sorry this chapter has taken so long. It kinda gave me trouble and I'm still not very happy with it, but i guess it's as good as it's going to get. let me know what you think. love!!

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**"What?" I lamely worded. His hand was still under my chin and we were in very close proximity.

"You said we could stay and hang out, and I said I'll stay," Paul repeated slowly as if I was dumb.

"Okay," I barely whispered. Neither of us moved for a moment, but I jerked out of my revere when I heard water running upstairs. I cleared my throat and took a step back. Paul's hand fell from my chin and back to his side. "Uh, let's sit down then." I led the way over to the sectional and sat down on the shorter of the two sides while Paul followed my lead and sat on the longer side.

We once again lapsed into silence. I could vaguely hear the sound of a hairdryer as my mom got ready for her date. I glanced down at my watch and saw that it was already three o'clock. I quickly stopped looking at it lest Paul think I was trying to hurry him away by looking at my watch every five minutes. When I looked at him, however, he seemed to be thinking about something as I had been. When the silence started to get a bit burdening I decided to break it.

"It's your turn, you know," I stated.

"Huh?" he said as loquaciously as I had earlier.

"Your turn. To ask me a question, I mean," I explained, referring to our game last night to get to know each other.

"Oh, right. Why didn't you ask anything about the way Emily looks?" he asked.

"What do you mean? Emily is beautiful," I said, not fully understanding what he was meaning.

"But her scars. Most people take a while to get over them. You've never been caught staring at them out of the corner of your eye and it's like you don't even notice them."

"Well, of course I noticed them, but Emily is more than just scars. She's really beautiful and kind. It's none of my business what happened to her, and I'm not going to treat her differently because of it," I finished. It was the truth. I had noticed Emily's scars but I was big enough to see that there was more to people than just physical limitations, and Emily was a truly lovely person inside and out.

Paul was staring at me and I didn't break the eye contact. He seemed to be searching for something. I stared determinedly back on. After a moment his eyes softened and there was a ghost of a smile on his face. I guess he found what he was looking for. "You're..." he started but then stopped. "Uh, your turn."

I wondered for moment what he was going to say, but figured he wouldn't tell me anyway. "Ok, you already know I'm an only child, so do you have any siblings?"

"I guess you could say I have five brothers," he said with a smirk. "Sam, Jacob, Embry, Quil, Jared and I are all like brothers. Since Sam, Jared, and Quil care about Emily, Kim, and Claire so much, we all care about them too, so they're my sisters. Other than that I don't have any siblings."

"You guys are really that close?" I asked hoping to get to know more about Paul's life other than just random facts. The guys seemed to have a really tight knit group and I wondered what made them so close that they thought of each other as brothers.

"Oh yeah. We're together most of the time working or just hanging out. We're really closely connected, I guess you could say. I think they like me least, though because I can get annoying with my temper."

"Well, I think I like you best," I blurted without thinking. I felt my eyes widen and I wished I could suck the words back in.

"Do you?" Paul asked with a quirked eyebrow and a sly smirk.

"I, uh, mean because, uh, you've been really nice to me and stuff," I finished lamely. "Anyway, it's your turn," I said, hoping to divert his attention.

"Right," he said, the smirk still playing on his face, and paused to think for a moment. "Why did you move here?"

He didn't seem to know what a loaded question he had asked. I could give him the short answer which was my mom got a new job or I could give him the full story of the divorce and my mother's need to get away. I thought for a moment and decided that he had already heard my mom calling me a whore and, since he heard that, I was sure he heard me say that my dad had cheated on my mom, so it couldn't really get much worse than that. I didn't mind telling people, I just didn't know if he wanted to know. I decided I would give him an option.

"Well," I said, taking a deep breath, "It's kind of a long story if you want the whole answer."

"I've got time," Paul said, looking at me with kind eyes and a small smile.

I smiled back slightly before beginning, "Well, I guess it started with my parents' divorce. Actually it started even before that. My dad is a doctor, and you already know my mom is a nurse. That's how they met in the beginning. They both worked at the same hospital, and eventually got married. My mom had been a nurse for a few years and knew how flirty doctors usually were, but she knew my dad was different," I chuckled darkly at this, "Anyway, when I was about 15 my mom got transferred to a different hospital. It was fine at first. Nothing really changed, but then my dad started getting home later and later from his shifts. She'd question him about it and he'd just chalk it up to the hectic schedule of being an in demand doctor. I was old enough to see that it really bothered my mother though. I watched them get more distant from each other until they were fighting almost constantly and it was like I wasn't even there anymore. They were too absorbed in their own problems. They didn't care that I could hear them fighting while I was trying to sleep at night or--," I stopped when I realized I was about to divulge too much about myself. "Long story short my dad was cheating on my mom. Some woman that was related to one of his patients, I think. I didn't care to gather the gory details. My parents finalized the divorce last year, my mom found a new job on the opposite side of the country and ever since the divorce she has been spending the odd night out with different guys. She was heartbroken, really. She just doesn't like to show how she really feels, so she fronts being indifferent or angry. But, anyway, here I am." I finished and looked back at Paul. I hoped he was satisfied with that. I didn't give him the details about my mother's stint with alcohol or how nasty my parents became towards each other nearing the end.

"That doesn't give her the right to say those bad things about you. Your mother or not," he stated firmly, seeing my attempt to make excuses for my mother, if for no other reason than that she is my mother.

"I know. We haven't ever really gotten along spectacularly anyway," I said with a shrug. "It doesn't really matter."

"But it does matter!" he said scooting closer to me with a blazing look in his eyes. I was slightly taken aback. "No matter what anyone says, you are not a whore. You are perfect."

The seriousness with which he said that caused my heart to constrict and my eyes to burn. I no longer cared that Paul and I barely knew each other. I felt unmistakably drawn to him and he seemed to have feelings for me just as I did for him.

"Thanks," I finally said in a whisper.

"You're welcome," he said, looking deep into my eyes. I felt like something about him was pulling me closer. I realized I had started to lean slowly towards him, and he was doing the same thing. We were getting closer and closer...

"Molly!" The door at the top of the stairs banged against the wall. With a sudden gasp, my eyes widened and I quickly moved backward away from Paul even though there was a wall separating the room from the stairwell.

"What?" I yelled back to my mother, irritated.

"My date is here. I don't know what time I'll be back. Bye." I heard the door shut again without her even waiting for me to bid her farewell in return.

_I think Paul and I almost kissed! What do I do now?_ I thought erratically. I was certain now that Paul would make an excuse to leave.

I saw him rub the back of his neck. "So, does your mom leave you here alone a lot?" Paul asked.

I silently thanked him for the new topic. It was best just to move on. I mean maybe we hadn't almost kissed. We were just having a passionate discussion, right?

I noticed him still staring at me, "Oh! Yeah, pretty much. I mean, she usually sleeps during the day anyway since she works all night, so it's not that much different to me. Plus my mom and dad had to go to medical conferences a lot and would leave me with a nanny or someone for sometimes weeks at a time."

"And that doesn't bother you? I mean, don't you get lonely?" he asked, his brow furrowing in concern.

"I don't guess so. I mean, my parents got me Boomer so I wouldn't feel so left out, I guess. I've never really felt the need to constantly be around people. Maybe it was programmed into when I was alone so much, but it doesn't really bother me. I find a lot of hobbies to keep me busy," I said nonchalantly. "That's probably why I don't get along with my mom. She wasn't really around much to actually be able to form a solid relationship with."

"What about your dad?" Paul asked.

I really didn't want to get into my dad with Paul right now. "Actually, I'm getting kind of hungry. I'm not sure what I have to eat here, but you can stay and have whatever I can find?" I ended it more of a question as I realize how pathetic the offer really sounded.

"If you want me to stay, I'd really like to," he said uncertainly.

"Oh no! I didn't mean that I wanted you to go!" I noticed Paul smile at this and I tried to reel in my enthusiasm. "I just wasn't sure if you wanted to go home or, you know, whatever," I finished lamely.

"I like spending time with you, Molly. You're intriguing," he said, leaning towards me again.

"I, uh, better go look in the kitchen," I mumbled out, when in reality I would have loved to stay right where I was, feeling the heat radiating from Paul.

"Ok," Paul said not moving away.

I shook my head slightly to clear my thoughts as they were becoming muddled by Paul's closeness, and how I didn't mind him being that close at all. "Be right back."

I ascended the stairs and went into the kitchen to begin rummaging through the cabinets. I was hit with how little we had in the cabinets, and I began to wonder what we ate everyday. When I went to the refrigerator I was met with my answer. We had only been here a week and there were already boxes upon boxes of take-out and pizza, most of which could do with being thrown out. Slightly disgusted with my mother's and my eating habits, I grabbed the jug of milk from the fridge and the cereal from the cabinet. Next, I went to the cabinet that held the dishes and pulled out two small bowls. On second thought, I placed one of the smaller bowls back and reached for a medium sized mixing bowl. I put a little of the cereal in my bowl and then poured the remainder of the box in the other bowl. I remembered how Paul said he could eat twelve of anything and figured it would be a safe bet.

After "making" the cereal, I went back downstairs to find Paul sitting on the couch, but with Boomer lying beside him. I took in the scene with an amused expression. Boomer shifted slightly, and Paul noticed my entrance.

"Sorry. He was at the door," he said, gesturing to the dog then to the sliding glass door.

"It's fine," I said handing Paul his bigger bowl. "Mom just doesn't like him on the furniture. But I'm not Mom, am I, Boom?" I scratched his head as I sat down. I looked up at Paul and saw him staring into his bowl. With a shock of embarrassment, I realized he had probably been exaggerating about being able to eat twelve of everything (_Who eats twelve of anything?!_), and now he thought I was crazy for bringing him so much cereal.

"Molly," he said, slowly. I cringed slightly, waiting for him to make me feel stupid. He lifted his eyes from the bowl and looked directly at me. A huge smile broke out across his face, "You rock!"

I laughed at this, relieved.

After we finished our cereal (Paul did manage to eat all of his), Boomer laid his head in my lap, and I wrapped my arms around him, hugging him to me tightly while stroking his fur. I noticed Paul staring at me yet again, "What? I like to cuddle," I said. My cheeks reddened slightly as I realized who I was talking to.

"Good to know," Paul said with a grin.

My blush deepened.

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**a/n: like i said, i didn't really like this chapter. hopefully the next update will be better. I'm still trying to get this story going in the direction that i want it to go. also, i hope no one is beginning to think this story is moving slowly bc i'm trying to make it work more normally instead of them proclaiming their love for one another right after they meet. don't worry, though, there should be some more drama/action to keep you entertained. it'll come in time :) review!! love!!  
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	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Thanks again for my wonderful reviews! We hit the 100 mark and then some!!! that's awesome you guys! I have to say that I absolutely LOVE this chapter!!! it's very fluffy and cute. i hope you like that :D. remember to review. i only got 17 for the last chapter and i really want to get a lot more. this chapter also has a slight time jump bc most of the action that is going to take place during this story is during the summer so I won't have the problem of Molly having to worry about school, so the school aspect of this story is almost over, but fear not, there will be lots of drama still to come from the other students. love!!

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**The next few weeks passed with little incident. I started hanging out in La Push with the guys a lot more, and they also began hanging out at my house (when my mom wasn't there) once I had gotten the TV and DVD player hooked up. I began to feel accepted by them. I had made a few more friends in Forks, but I had the odd sense that the guys treated me more like part of their family. I wasn't sure why they did, but I was glad for it. Once my mother's work routine was more finalized, and we had a better judgment of when she would be home, most of the guys became fixed structures in my home. They were always popping in unannounced or inviting me to La Push, and I realized that maybe I had been wrong about thinking I was fine doing things on my own. Feeling a part of a group filled a part of me I hadn't realized was empty.

Paul definitely dropped in more than the other guys, and I found that I couldn't stop grinning whenever he would just stop by to say hi. We hadn't been alone for as a long a time as we had a few weeks ago, and we definitely hadn't come close to kissing again. It was like we were getting a feel for where we stood with each other. I just hoped that Paul and I were standing on the same cliff. I found out more about him, and sometimes I would catch him looking at me with an odd look on his face when he thought I wouldn't notice. As hard as I tried I could never decipher what was playing in his eyes. I could just smile slightly at him and a broad grin would stretch across his face.

With only a few final weeks of school left, Samantha, Jillie and I decided we needed a break. They were definitely my best girl friends I had. Sure, the La Push guys had easily wormed their way in my heart as great friends, but it was nice to have girls around and listen to them gush about guys or whatever whim passed through their minds. I was realizing it was actually nice to have friends. Our need for a break had come just in time for the carnival that had made it to town.

It was the end of the school day on Friday and I had just gotten home. A note from my mother let me know that she had gotten up early to go somewhere before work. I didn't see how she managed to get along on as little sleep as she seemed to be getting. Jillie and Samantha were coming over to my house later before we went to the carnival. We had figured that after the carnival they could stay at my house for a sleepover since my mom wouldn't be home, and we could be as loud as we wanted. Jack had asked Samantha to go to the carnival with him, and we couldn't have been more excited for her. It seemed like Jack was finally acting on his feelings for her. Of course, Jillie and I would slip away from the couple as soon as it wouldn't be obvious to give them some romantic, carnival, alone time.

I went to the basement room so I could let Boomer into the house from the backyard, and I heard the doorbell ring before the squeak of the front door opening. Boomer started barking at the intruder.

"Molly?" I heard Jillie call.

"Down here!" I yelled back as I scratched Boomer to calm him down.

I heard two sets of feet pounding down the stairs, and Samantha and Jillie entered the room. Boomer wagged his tail at them after seeing it was just my friends.

"Guess what?!" Jillie all but shrieked, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"What?"

"Derek asked me to go to the carnival with him!" she squealed. Jillie had been holding out hope that Derek would ask her to the carnival, and since she wouldn't see him until after the weekend after today, she had almost given up.

"That's great!" I squealed back. Sometimes it felt great just to let go and act like a girl.

Samantha, Jillie, and I all grabbed hands and started squealing with excitement while jumping around in a circle. I was so excited for the both of them.

"Hey."

"Ahh!" The three of us screamed as we heard another voice and jumped away from each other.

When I looked at the stairwell, I saw Paul and Jared standing at the bottom with amused and slightly confused looks on their faces. "How can guys so huge be so quiet?" I mused out loud, putting a hand on my chest over my rapidly beating heart.

"You guys scared the hell out of me!" Jillie exclaimed.

"Well, maybe if you ladies hadn't been shrieking already, you would have heard us," Paul smirked.

"Hey," I said, pointing a finger at him and glaring playfully. "We don't need the sass, mister."

"What were you guys screaming about anyway?" Jared asked.

"Before or after you nearly gave us heart attacks?"

"Before," he chuckled.

"Our dates for the carnival tonight," Samantha spoke.

"Well, Jill's and Samantha's dates, anyway. I'm going solo," I stated, realizing that I would be sort of a fifth wheel. I thought I noticed a change in Paul's posture. Relief?

"Oh no you aren't," Jillian said with an evil smirk. Paul stiffened again.

"What did you do?" I was almost afraid to ask.

"Nothing...yet." She grinned evilly again, and grabbed me by the shoulders. She steered me to stand in front of Paul. She let go of my shoulders then tried to move Paul more in front of me, unsuccessfully I might add. "Can I get some help here?" Jill asked Jared.

Jared shoved Paul so he was facing me directly. Paul's face was what I was positive of being a mirror image to my own. Wide eyes looking horrified at the sudden spotlight, not to mention audience included.

"Paul," Jillian spoke again from where she had taken her position behind me, "This is the part you ask Molly to go to the carnival with you."

"Uh-"

"You don't have to," I murmured, looking down. As much as I wanted Paul to ask me, I didn't want him to be forced into it. I felt a now familiar warm hand cup my chin, and found myself looking into Paul's deep brown eyes.

"Molly, will you go to the carnival with me?" Paul asked in that soft voice I had only heard him use with me.

"Yes," I answered a little breathlessly.

"Tell you what," I sort of registered Jared talking, "I'll see if Kim wants to go too. She really wants to meet you, Molly."

"Great!" Jillie began speaking again. "Well, you boys go get ready and we will meet you guys there in about an hour."

"See you then," Jared said, pulling Paul along with him. I wanted sorely to object to Paul's leaving since he had just gotten there, but I was hit with the realization that Paul and I were going to the carnival together.

I slowly turned back to the girls left in the room and looked at them. It was my turn to shriek, and we started up our jumping circle again. I could have sworn I heard the ghost of a chuckle float down the stairs.

An hour and ten minutes later, Jillian, Samantha, and I were pulling into the parking area of the carnival. We would have been there sooner, but Jill insisted that she go through all of my clothing to find something for me to wear. She had decided on a form-fitting, long-sleeved, red t-shirt that "brought out my natural coloring", according to her, and I was determined to wear my light jeans so I could at least stay a bit casual, and Jill finally consented. After also making me wear my hair down, we were able to leave. With the way she was treating me, it was as if she thought I had no sense of style at all. I do know how to fix my own hair, thank you very much.

As we made our way to the front gate, Jillie and Samantha called out as they saw Jack and Derek. I searched the small crowd of people waiting in line. As they towered over the rest, it was relatively easy to spot Jared and also Quil. I noticed a girl standing with Jared and assumed it must have been Kim. Quil, on the other hand, had a toddler balanced on his shoulder. I didn't see Paul. Panic set my heart into rapid thumps. Maybe he had changed his mind.

"I'll be right back," I told the girls, and made my way over to the others. "Hey, guys," I greeted when I had weaved my way through the bodies.

"Hey, Molly," Jared greeted back. "This is my girlfriend, Kim."

"Nice to meet you," I said, with a smile.

"You too," she said, pulling me into a hug. I was slightly surprised by her enthusiasm. "It's great to finally meet you. I was getting tired of Paul always saying things about you with me still not knowing who you are."

"Paul talks about me?" If I was apparently on his mind so much, then why wasn't he here?

Before Kim could say anymore, Jared gently put a hand over her mouth and said, "Speak of the devil..."

I turned to see what he meant, and saw Paul approaching. My mouth nearly gaped at the sight of him. He was wearing a white button-up with the sleeves rolled to his elbows, showing off well muscled forearms, along with a pair of dark-wash jeans. The white shirt contrasted nicely with his dark skin. He looked amazing.

"Did you get the tickets?" Quil asked Paul.

"Yeah. Where did you think I went?" Paul replied sarcastically. He handed the tickets to Jared and Quil. I assumed he gave them tickets for Kim and the little girl with Quil also.

"See you guys in there," Jared said, putting his arm around Kim and walking towards the front gate with Quil walking behind them, bouncing the little girl and making her giggle.

Paul finally looked at me when we were alone. "Hi," he said.

"Hi," I said back, smiling at his sudden shyness.

"I've never seen you with your hair down before," he said, reaching out and grabbing one of my strands of curly hair. He pulled it slightly with his other hand and watched it spring back into place. "You look really pretty."

I blushed at his compliment. "Thanks," I replied.

"Are you ready to go in?" he asked, gesturing to the gate.

"I have to get my ticket, actually," I informed him.

He stuck out his hand and showed me the ticket he held between his fingers. He slid his fingers opposite directions and a second ticket slid from behind the first. "Already taken care of," he said with a smile.

"Paul! You didn't have to do that. I would have bought my own." My independence took a hit.

"I know that, but I wanted to, and it's already done, so there isn't any point in arguing over it."

I had to admit, it was rather sweet of him to do. "Well, thank you," I said sincerely.

"It was my pleasure," he said just as sincerely. "Now since that is taken care of, are you ready to go?"

"Let's go," we walked through the gate side by side and started looking for the others. We noticed them a few yards away along with Jack, Samantha, Jillian, and Derek. We had quite the large group. "So who is the little girl with Quil?"

"Oh, that's Claire. She's Emily's niece." I had heard mentions of Claire before, but I had never gotten around to actually finding out who she was.

"Then why didn't Sam and Emily bring her?" I wondered.

"Well, let's just say she has an unusual attachment to Quil. He's just as attached her, if not more so, so it works well. He's always babysitting or taking her to the beach, and she loves it. Plus it gives her mom a break."

"That's really sweet," I said almost to myself. I always found it endearing when a guy liked little kids. It probably came from the fact that my dad had very little to do with me when I was younger.

"Yeah, she's a cutie."

By then we had met up with the others. I ran over to Jill and grabbed my camera out of her bag. I looped the strap around my wrist so I would have easy access to it if I needed it.

"Ooooh, Molly! Will you take a picture of me and Jared?" Kim asked excitedly.

"Sure!" I said enthusiastically. I always loved an opportunity to take pictures. I moved so that I was more in front of them and had them scoot so that there were a lot of lights from the carnival in the background but not enough to drown out the shot. With the sun sinking quickly, it made a wonderful backdrop. "Ok. Ready?" Jared wrapped his arms around Kim and grinned while she leaned into him and wrapped her arms around his waist, grinning just the same. "One, two, three!" I snapped the shutter button and took the picture. "Great! I'll make sure to give you guys a copy of all the ones we take tonight when I get them on my computer."

After taking Kim's and Jared's picture, everyone else wanted pictures too. After about 15 minutes of just taking pictures, everyone was ready to get on some rides.

"Are we done now?" Paul asked after I snapped a picture of Quil and a giggling Claire.

"Don't be so impatient, Paul," Kim chastised. "Besides, we haven't gotten one of you yet."

"I don't like having my picture taken," he said immediately.

"Come on! Don't ruin the fun!"

"Just do it, Paul," Jared joined in seeing that it was something Kim wanted.

"I bet he'd take one with Molly," Quil grinned mischievously.

"Shut up, Quil!" Paul fumed.

"It's ok," I said to everyone, handing my camera back to Jillian so she could put it in her bag for the moment. "I already have a picture of Paul."

"You do?" Jillian asked

"Yeah, I flashed him a few weeks ago," as soon as I said the words I felt heat rise in my face. Everyone's eyes got wide and their mouths dropped open. I was, of course, referring to when we had been moving some of my things and I found my camera while Paul was in my room and had taken his picture, causing the flash to go off in his eyes, but it came out completely wrong.

I covered my face with my hands. "Oh my lord!" The words came out muffled through my hands. I wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

"That's not what she meant, you guys!" Paul almost yelled.

There was silence for another moment then everyone busted out laughing. I was so embarrassed. I made to turn away from everyone, but ran into something. I peeked through my fingers and found that I was up against Paul's chest. His large, warm arms wrapped around me, keeping me pulled to him.

"Leave her alone," I heard him say. He ducked his head so he could look at my face, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah. Just terribly embarrassed." I took a deep breath and turned back to the others. Paul's arms slid back to his sides. "Moving on..." I said, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, let's go ride something," Samantha said.

We all rode a few rides together then ventured off in our pairs to play some of those cheap carnival games. I wasn't really into wasting money on them because I knew they were rigged so no one could win any of the really good prizes.

"Hey, big fella, why don't you try to win a prize for your little lady?" One of the carnival workers yelled at Paul as we were passing by. I tried not to laugh because I thought people only said "big fella" and "little lady" to complete strangers in movies and old TV shows.

Paul looked down at me and raised his eyebrows. I looked at the game the worker was manning and saw it was one where you had to throw a ball and try to knock down all the bottles.

"Don't waste your money," I told him. "You know these things are made so no one can really win." As if to prove my point, a guy threw the ball and hit the bottles but it bounced off and barely even rattled them.

"Hey, Quil!" Paul called over my head. I turned and saw Quil walking over with Claire in one arm and a teddy bear bigger than the little girl herself in his other arm.

"What's up?"

"Molly doesn't think I can beat this game. What do you think?" He asked as if he already knew the answer, and I felt like I was missing an inside joke.

"If I can win this for Claire-bear here, then I think you can win too," Quil answered, gesturing to the stuffed animal under his arm.

Paul looked at me again. "Hey, it's your money. Go ahead if you want," I said, raising my hands in surrender. "But you don't have to do it for me."

He grinned in response and pulled me over to the booth. He laid down his money and the worker put three balls on the counter in front of him. He gave me one last look before picking up the first ball and throwing it directly at the bottles. As soon as it hit, all of the bottles flew in the air then rattled to the ground. He turned to me grinning again, and my mouth dropped open.

"Impressive," I told him, and he looked like a proud little kid.

"Impressive, all right," the worker said, looking slightly annoyed. "Well pick your prize," he said, pointing to the higher quality large stuffed animals on the top shelf.

"You pick," I told Paul when he looked at me questioningly.

"That one," he said immediately and the worker grabbed the prize with a hook. Paul took it from him and handed it to me.

I looked at it and saw that it was a large, soft, silvery-gray wolf. "This is awesome!"

"Glad you like it."

"Thanks, Paul," I said, hugging him. He wrapped his arms around me and I was enveloped in his warmth.

"No problem."

Later, our group met up again and for the rest of the night, we rode many rides and had a lot of fun with me getting a quick picture whenever the opportunity arose. Quil would venture off every now and then to let Claire ride some of the little kid rides while the other guys thought it would be funny to spin the seats really fast on the Tilt-o-whirl resulting in us girls getting extremely dizzy and queasy. Needless to say, they felt bad afterward and tried to comfort us.

"Do you want some popcorn?" Derek asked tentatively, offering his small bag to those of us sitting on the bench trying to regain our balance.

"Idiot," Jack punched Derek on the arm, "They feel like they are going to puke. Don't offer them food!"

"No, actually, I think popcorn is a good idea," I said, giving the girls a secretive glance.

We all took a handful from the bag, then following my lead, threw it into the face of our respective guy, and took of running. Kim grabbed my hand and we ended up behind a balloon display after dodging several people.

"They are so going to kill us," Kim breathed heavily. "That was awesome though!"

We could hear them calling our names and the occasional squeal as Samantha and Jill tried dodging Jack and Derek. Kim and I tried futilely to stifle our giggles. Unfortunately, a large bubble of laughter erupted from us just as Jared was walking by looking for us, and he immediately locked eyes with us.

"Paul! I found them!" Jared yelled over his shoulder and closed more than half the gap between us in less then two bounds.

"Run!" Kim gasped, giving me a shove as Jared's arms closed around her, and she erupted into more giggles.

I only made it a few feet when I was enclosed in a pair of arms and swung off the ground bridal style. I shrieked in surprise, and found myself looking into Paul's face as he cradled me against his chest.

"Don't you know not to pick fights with people bigger than you?" he asked quietly, his face only inches away from mine.

"I like a challenge," I replied.

Paul quirked an eyebrow as the others joined us. He gently lowered me to the ground and stood behind me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders as my back rested against him. I was once again shocked at how natural it felt.

"That was fun," Jillian said, all of us slightly out of breath.

"Did I miss something?" Quil asked as he approached.

"Just revenge," I said causing everyone to laugh. "Very mild revenge, I might add."

"I think we have time for one more ride, you guys," Quil said, as Claire's little mouth opened in a yawn and she snuggled into his chest.

"Hey, let's ride the Ferris Wheel!" Kim suggested, which happened to be the ride we ended up in front of after our little romp.

Everyone started moving toward the line, but I hesitated. Paul noticed.

"What's wrong?" he asked, concern painting his wonderful eyes.

_You don't have to try to be so brave,_ he had told me. He made me feel as if it was all right to be vulnerable. "I, uh, don't like Ferris Wheels," I said, somewhat embarrassed.

"Why not?" he asked, coming to stand directly in front of me, seeming genuinely interested. I avoided his eyes as he tried to search mine. "Molly, I watched you ride some of the biggest and fastest rides here. What's wrong with the Ferris Wheel? It's as mild as the Carousel."

"But Carousels are on the ground," I blurted.

"You stay home alone, you ride gigantic, towering rides, and you punch drunk guys in the face" -he smiled at that one- "But you're afraid of heights?" he asked, incredulously.

"Not really. Ferris Wheels just freak me out for some reason," I said, fiddling with the wolf in my arms.

"Come on," Paul said, grabbing my hand and walking toward the line.

"Paul!"

"Molly!" he imitated me. I glared at him. "I promise to protect you. Nothing will happen."

"Ok," I agreed after I deliberated for a moment, still reluctant.

We were guided to a seat for two and sat down side by side with me on Paul's left, and I squeezed my stuffed wolf between me and the side of the seat. We were the last seat to be filled, and I waited nervously for the ride to begin. I looked up and saw Samantha wave down at me from a few seats higher as she sat next to Jack. I waved back uneasily.

The sleek metal bar lowered in front of us and the seat lurched slightly as the ride began. I made a nervous noise in the back of my throat.

Paul sighed softly as he heard me, and gave me a comforting smile. He wrapped his left arm around my back and pulled me into his side, while reaching his right hand across us and lacing his fingers through my left hand.

"Don't worry. I've got you," he said in my ear. I shivered.

As our seat slowly made it's way higher, I turned my head and hid my eyes in Paul's shoulder. I felt him chuckle slightly and put his chin on top of my head.

"Don't laugh at me," I told him, even though it was muffled against his arm.

"I'm not," he said, rubbing my shoulder, but I could tell by the sound of his voice that he really was.

"Look, Molly," Paul said a short time later. I felt our seat sway a little as it stopped again.

I shook my head against his shoulder. I knew we were at the very top. There was no way I was opening my eyes now.

"You're okay. I promise. Just look." He waited a few seconds then added, "Please?" very softly.

_Why did he have to say 'please'?!_ I slowly raised my head and looked at him. He was grinning broadly, then motioned with his head in the direction he wanted me to look.

"Wow," I said softly. From the top of the Ferris Wheel, I could see across the entire carnival. The view was beautiful with the array of colorful lights lit up against the black backdrop of the sky. "That's amazing," I breathed.

"I know." I turned my gaze back to Paul and saw him staring directly at me.

Suddenly the seat lurched again, and we were slowly moving down. I wrapped my arms around Paul's waist in surprise of the movement. I felt him chuckle again as he tightened his arms around me and rested his temple against the top of my head.

That's when it hit me. I was in a carnival ride seat with Paul. My arms were around him. His arms were around me.

_Maybe Ferris Wheels aren't so bad after all..._

_

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_**A/N: *squee* like i said, I love this!! and i wrote it!! i just think carnivals are extremely romantic (is that weird?). Ferris Wheels have got to be the most date-worthy ride ever. i really hope you all liked reading as much as i liked writing it! please remember to review and let me know what you think, whether you loved it, liked it, or even hated it this time. oh, and i also now accept anonymous reviews so even if you don't have an account, feel free to review!! thanks!!**


	8. Chapter 8

**a/n: again, thanks for the reviews!! that was the most reviewed chapter with a total of 26 over the month it's taken me to update (sorry). i know many of you were hoping for a kiss at the carnival and you have no idea how close i was to putting it in there! i've had their first kissed planned for a while so it took all of my will power not to get ahead of myself and put it in there. sorry, but it doesn't happen in this chapter either. this just has more drama and some slight fluff. enjoy!!**

* * *

"Did you guys have a good time?" I asked the girls as we headed up the stairs to my room. Samantha and Jillian with their overnight bags, and me with the junk food.

"I had a great time. Derek was a lot of fun. He even asked me to go out again next weekend," Jillie said with a grin.

"That's great!" I responded as they threw their overnight bags on my bed, and we began changing into our pajamas.

"I have to tell you something," Samantha spoke after she sat down on my beanbag and Jillie had taken the swivel chair at my desk. I could see a smile struggling to stay off Samantha's face.

"What?" I asked excitedly, leaning against the bedpost.

"You better spill, girl," Jillie demanded.

"Jack asked me to be his girlfriend," Samantha ducked her head, blushing, but her broad grin could still be seen.

"Sam!" Jillie and I both screamed.

"That's fantastic!"

"About damn time too," Jillie added.

"Of course, you said yes, right?"

"Of course," Samantha said, blushing again. "It was so sweet. He got all flustered and told me how he had been liking me for a long time." She sighed blissfully. I couldn't help smiling at her happiness.

"So what about you, Mollipop?" Jill asked, using her new nickname for me. "Are you and Paul going out again?"

"Oh. I don't know," I said, placing my plush wolf on my pillows as I sat down on the bed.

"What do you mean you don't know? It's not like you don't like him."

"What do you mean?" I asked, not meeting their eyes.

"Don't even!" Jill said with a smile. "It's obvious you like him."

My mouth dropped open and I looked at Samantha, who was the softer-spoken of the two. Even she nodded apologetically. I blushed.

"Don't be embarrassed. It's obvious he likes you too," Samantha consoled. "It's sort of weird actually..."

"I know what you mean!" Jillian added.

"Wait," I said, "What _do_ you mean?"

"Well, it just seems so...natural, I guess. You've only known each other a month or so and you seem like you've known each other your entire lives. The way you act around each other, all playful and teasing, it's adorable. What makes it weird though, is the fact the you are so tiny and he is huge, but when Paul puts his arms around you or holds your hand, it's like you were made for each other. You just fit," Samantha explained with a shrug.

"Plus the devastated looks either of you get when the other leaves," Jillie said.

"Ok, I do _not_ look devastated when he leaves," I stated.

"Well maybe not devastated, but you definitely get sad. You are never as happy as you are when you are around him either. I'm certain he's the same way. His face lights up when you give him the slightest smile, and he's always watching you. Normally that kinda thing would be considered really creepy in my opinion, but his look is different. It's more like he's...watching over you, than stalking you," she laughed.

I smiled too, but it faded as I began to think. "I think you guys are wrong," I said, softly. Why should Paul like me? I have a crazy mother, a distant father, I don't spend hours on my appearance, and I love sports. I'm not exactly a guy's first choice in girlfriend. A good friend to hang out with, but not a girlfriend.

"Fine. We'll give you proof. Hook your camera up to the computer so we can look at the pictures from tonight, please," she demanded nicely (sort of).

I sighed and grabbed my camera and the proper hook ups, pushing Jillie's chair and sending her spinning across the room. "How are the pictures that I took of you all going to be proof to me? Paul didn't even want his picture taken, remember?"

"Just wait."

I opened the file and waited for the pictures to download from the camera to the computer, then opened the first picture so we could scroll through them.

"Aw, that's a good one of Kim and Jared," I said. The carnival lights in the background had worked out nicely with their pose.

After scrolling through the first dozen or so and commenting on how they looked, I came across a picture that I didn't take. "I didn't do this one," I said, clicking on it to make it bigger.

When it popped up full size, I saw it was a picture of me and Paul! He was holding me bridal style with the stuffed wolf in my arms and our faces close together, looking at each other. "Who took this?" I asked, incredulously.

"I did," Jillie said, proudly. "Right after the Tilt-o-Whirl incident and our revenge. There's more." She moved my hand from the mouse and clicked on another that must have been taken before that one.

This picture showed Paul with his arm casually around my shoulders as we looked at something out of the shot. Jillie then proceeded to click on another which was at a very odd angle. I looked closer and saw that it was another of Paul and me, but this time it was when we were on the Ferris Wheel. His arm was around my back and I was tucked into his side. Our hands were laced together across us, and his chin was resting on top of my head.

"That is just adorable," Samantha commented.

"How did you take that?" I asked, turning to look at Jill's face.

"Well, I was sort of leaned over the back of Derek's and my chair and looking down at you guys," she said nonchalantly. "What?" she responded to my shocked face. "It was too cute to pass up! Anyway, I saved this one for last, because it is the proof that you need."

She scrolled back up a few rows and clicked on another picture. In this one, Paul had both of his arms around me from behind as I leaned back against his chest. He was looking down at me and I was looking up at him.

"I got that one right after the guys caught us and before we got on the Ferris Wheel."

I stared at the picture for a moment. Paul had that look his eyes that I still hadn't figured out. Then I remembered what the girls were trying to show me. "So that look. That's him liking me?" I asked tentatively.

"Actually," Jillie said, furrowing her brow as she looked at the picture on the screen, "Now that you mention it, I don't think that's 'like' after all."

"Oh," I said, trying to hide my disappointment.

"That's love," Jillie said, bumping my shoulder.

"What?!"

* * *

Monday arrived too soon in my opinion. Not only was it damp and gray, which I had come to know was the norm in Forks and the few warm days we had had were freak rarities, but I also found out that I was the topic of gossip. I had expected it when I first arrived since I was another rarity in Forks: a new student. However, I had figured it would die down since I had been there a month already and the school year was almost ending. I found out I was wrong in that assumption while I was in a girls' restroom at the end of the day.

I had my hand on the lock of the stall I was about to exit when I heard the door to the restroom open and heard two girls talking.

"...Molly Bridges, but I guess it's true," I heard the first girl say. I paused with my hand still on the lock, not sure where the conversation was going since I hadn't heard all of it.

"How do you know it's true? Anyone could just be saying that Molly is a major slut," girl number two said.

"Well, I heard it from Tiffany that Molly had been hanging out with those reservation guys. You know, the ones that are really big and are always crashing the bonfires we have at First Beach?"

"And how does that make her a slut?"

"Come on, Meghan. You've seen them. One look at them and they just scream 'gang bangers.' I bet she's sleeping with all of them. Plus I saw her this weekend at the carnival, and there were _three_ of those guys around her. One of them was always touching her and putting his arms around her. I bet it's his turn with her. Too bad. He's really hot."

"Wow. No wonder she won't date Tanner. I bet those guys won't let her hang out with other guys."

"Exactly. She flirts with Tanner anyway too. Tiffany's really pissed about that. Plus Molly led Tanner on when she first got here, and then had one of those Indian guys almost beat him to death."

"I heard about that..."

I heard the door to the restroom close again signaling the girls had left, and slowly opened the stall door. I walked over to one of the sinks and stared into the mirror above it.

_Why must everyone think I'm a slut?_ I wondered. It made me angry that Tiffany was spreading those lies about me. I did not flirt with Tanner. I knew she was just doing it because she liked Tanner and Tanner had flirted with me, but it still made my eyes sting as I thought about it. Not only did my mother think I was a whore, but most of the student body thought I slept around with people also. I blinked rapidly to keep the tears at bay and luckily none escaped.

I heard a bell ring overhead, and I began making my way to the parking lot. When I looked at my Jeep I saw Jillie standing beside it with Derek's hands on her shoulders as he stood behind her while they talked to Samantha and Jack who had their hands clasped together. I took a deep breath and walked up to them, hoping my face didn't reveal anything.

"Hey guys," I said, unlocking my doors and throwing my bag into the backseat.

"Molly, I think you should know that Tiffany is-"

"I know," I cut Jill off. She looked at me questioningly. "I heard some bimbos talking about it in the bathroom. People really need to learn to check the stalls before they start gossiping," I joked off with a forced smile.

"Are you ok?" Samantha asked with concern written across her face.

"Yeah. I'm fine. We know it's not true, so it doesn't matter," I stated strongly, leaning casually against the side of my Jeep.

"Hey, Molly," Kenny Nettles came up and leaned up against the back of my Jeep also looking at me.

"What's up, Kenny?" I said less then enthusiastically. He was one of Tanner's better friends, therefore a lesser one of mine.

"I was just thinking that we could hook up later," he said, winking at me in the same degrading way Tanner did. I couldn't believe he just asked me that in front of my friends!

"Why don't you back off, Nettles," Derek said, while he and Jack both glared at Kenny.

"Are you gonna make me, King?"

"Do I really need to?" Derek moved Jill out from in front of him and took a step towards Kenny.

"Stop it," I said, stepping between them.

Kenny looked Derek up and down. Derek was considerably bigger than Kenny.

"We'll talk later," Kenny said to me before walking away.

I exhaled loudly and turned back towards the others. They were all looking at me cautiously. "I'll talk to you guys later. I've got to get home," I said, getting in my Jeep and leaving the parking lot.

When I got home, I made sure my mom was still asleep, let Boomer in, and went straight up to my room. I set my bag on the floor, kicked off my shoes and curled up on my bed. I wondered if random guys coming up to me asking me to hook up was going to become a daily occurrence now. I felt the bed sink a little as Boomer jumped up on it. He whined slightly and laid his head on my side. I turned over and he curled into me, licking my face lightly. He always knew when I was upset and always kept me company no matter what. I stroked his fur and he whined again as if asking if I was alright.

"Why are people so stupid, Boom?" I sighed.

I laid there for a long time with Boomer never leaving my bed. I felt terrible. No matter how many times people said that gossip didn't bother them, it was always untrue. I didn't want people thinking bad things about me. What if they thought I would just have sex with them whenever they wanted? Of course people were already thinking that. Kenny was a prime example.

I heard the sounds of my mom getting ready and then heard her car start outside. Since Mondays as well as Sundays had become her weekend, I was guessing that she was going out again.

A little while after she left, I heard the doorbell ring and then two knocks on the front door. Boomer jumped off the bed and went to the window. He couldn't see who was at the door because of the roof over the porch, but he didn't start barking like he would have at any other intruder. He knew as well as I did who it was. Paul. He was the only one who ever rang my doorbell_ and_ knocked twice. My mom must have locked the door after she left, because usually he would walk in.

Boomer looked at me then back out the window with his tail wagging. I didn't get up. _Gang bangers. His turn._ The things those girls said came flooding back in my mind. I was ashamed. I just stood there and let them talk about my friends like that. Especially Paul. I punched Tanner in the face, but didn't say a word to two stupid girls? Saying horrible things about some of the best people I know when they don't even know them was worse than people saying things about me.

The light had started fading from outside before I finally got off of my bed. I needed some air. I straightened out my shirt and tugged at my jeans to get the legs untwisted from me being curled on my bed so long. I put my shoes back on and walked to the front door, leaving Boomer snoozing on my bed.

I began the now familiar walk towards La Push, moving at a much slower pace than usual. I half hoped that I wouldn't run into any of the guys. I would be too ashamed to look them in the eye. As I passed Sam and Emily's, I saw the yard deserted, but a few lights on inside the house. I quickly made my way past, hoping they wouldn't spot me. _I should have walked towards Forks_, I thought. _Then I wouldn't have to worry about them spotting me._

Amazingly, I found myself at the edge of First Beach. My thoughts were so jumbled that I didn't even realize I had walked so far, or that it had gotten considerable darker out. The slightly orange dusky sky behind the clouds had now turned to the darker blues of twilight. There was just enough light to make out vague shapes in the distance. I stood there for a moment before realizing I shouldn't be out walking alone at night. I should have at least have brought Boomer.

Just as I thought this, I got a weird feeling in my stomach. It wasn't an uncomfortable feeling, but more like an awareness. I turned around slowly, and saw Paul standing a few yards away with his hands in his pockets just watching me. I marveled at how he could still look so good when just wearing some shorts and a gray hoodie. He started making his way over when he saw that I had noticed him.

"Hey," he said as he stopped beside me. I noticed he wasn't wearing his usual grin he had when he was around me. He was just watching me carefully.

"Hey," I said softly, turning back to look at the water.

We were silent for a beat, before Paul asked,"What's the matter?"

"What makes you think something is the matter?" I returned still not looking at him and stalling for time. I didn't want to tell Paul what happened. He would think I was horrible for not standing up for them.

"Well," he started, "You didn't answer when I came over today. You are still wearing the clothes I'm guessing you wore to school, which means you didn't go running, and you won't look at me."

"Oh," was all I said. When did he become so observant? I still didn't want to tell him about today. I felt like I was constantly talking about some problem or another going on in my life. First my dad cheating on my mom, my mother's thinking that I'm a whore and now the entire school thinking it. I wanted him to think I was a little normal.

"Are you mad at me? Did I do something?" He asked suddenly, sounding agonized.

My head quickly whipped up to meet his eyes. They looked pained. "No!" I practically yelled. "Gosh, no, Paul. Geez."

"Then what is it? I know it's something."

I had to tell him now. I couldn't live with it if he thought I was mad at him for something. "I just had a bad day at school." I hoped he would take that.

"Molly," he said, knowing there was more and dashing my hopes.

I sighed and stepped closer to the water. "That snob Tiffany is spreading rumors about me."

"What kind of rumors?" I could just picture his brow furrowing and the suspicion growing in his expressive dark eyes.

I took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. I knew he wouldn't settle until he had the entire story so I knew I had to spill it out. "She's pissed because she likes Tanner and Tanner flirted with me, so she's telling everyone that I'm a slut because I hang out with you and the other guys. Everyone thinks you are all in a gang or something and that I'm sleeping with all of you, and that's the reason that I'm not dating Tanner. Some people saw us at the carnival over the weekend, and completely twisted it into something sick, saying how it was 'your turn' with me." I paused as I felt my voice about to crack.

Shame took place in my voice as I continued, "I was standing in the bathroom stall listening and I didn't say a word. I just let them say those terrible things about you guys. Then some guy asked me if I wanted to hook up after school today. I just feel so ashamed and...dirty."

I waited for Paul to tell me how terrible I was for not sticking up for them. How I wasn't worth being friends with.

"Did he touch you?"

"What?" I said, turning back to look at him. I just told him that I was the worst friend ever and he's asking about me?

"Did he touch you?" he asked slowly, deliberately. His fists were tight at his sides, and I could tell he was trying to control his voice. "Because, I swear Molly, if some guy laid one finger on you I'll kill him." Anger was certainly clear in his voice. I was still shocked that it wasn't directed at me.

I had momentarily forgotten Paul's temper, and quickly set to calm him. "He didn't touch me. I promise." The cool night air and a sudden breeze from the water caused me to shiver. I hadn't put on a coat before I left.

Paul noticed and his eyes softened. His quickly pulled his hoodie over his head and pulled it down over mine. It stopped just above my knees, and the sleeves were miles too long when I put my arms through them. It felt like it had just come out of the dryer it was so warm. It smelled of Paul, which was a familiar scent in itself that I had yet to place.

"Thanks," I giggled as I looked down at myself.

"No problem," he said smiling at me. I thought it strange how my simple shiver could change his mood drastically.

"I'm sorry I didn't say anything to those girls when they were saying bad things about you guys," I said quietly.

"Molly," Paul started while reaching out with his large hand to stroke my cheek. "That's not your fault. They've always been saying things like that about us because we live on the rez and don't have as much money as most of them do. I'm sorry they say those things about you. We'll understand if you don't want to hang out with us anymore."

"No!" I said quickly, stepping forward and wrapping my arms around Paul's waist. He didn't hesitate for a second before his arms were around me and I was enveloped in his warmth. "Of course I want to hang out with you! You guys are the best friends I have." I hoped he didn't noticed the slight hesitation before I said 'friends.' Paul wasn't just a friend to me.

"Will you do me a favor then?" he asked me. I nodded my consent. "Tell me if anyone tries anything again?"

"Paul, you don't have to deal with this. It's my problem," I told him confidently.

"I know, but...but if anything ever happened to you, I would never forgive myself. You are much too important to me." He tightened his arms around me, pressing me more to him.

My heart soared at his words. I whispered, "You're important to me too, Paul."

_More than you know._

_

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**a/n: Molly's life sucks doesn't it? sadly, it will suck some more too...you'll just have to read to find out how. i know i'm putting a lot of drama in this story, but i want there to be some action besides 'i love him. let's get married.' you know? Plus i wanted you to see another side of Molly. Yeah she's tough, but things get to her just like everyone else. Hoepfully they will be getting officially together soon as well as Molly finding out about the werewolf thing. so you know there will be some drama there. :)**

**i know this chapter kind of had a weird break from the sleepover to the Monday after, but there really wasn't anything else with the sleepover and it would have been too short to leave as a chapter itself. **

**Also, I'm thinking of doing a Paul's side to this story. What do you think? I just feel like readers would be able to see his temperment better. it will be separate from this story because i don't want to have two chapters in a row being the same thing just in different views. leave me a review and let me know if you would like paul's side.**

**sorry for the terribly long a/n. please review and i hope you enjoy it! thanks for reading!! love!!**


	9. Chapter 9

**a/n: chapter 8 is now the most reviewed chapter with 27 reviews, which beat chapter 7 by one review! that's great! yes, even just one review more is amazing, and i love them all. can we make chapter 9 the most reviewed?? can we hit 200 reviews?? just as a heads up this chapter is sort of short and kind of a filler, but fear not, you will get a nice surprise at the end (don't scroll down and read it because that will ruin it!!). also, i changed the summary of the story hoping to catch more people's attention and get more readers. thanks so much for your reviews!! love!!

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**By Friday, the rest of the week had moved on as weeks do. Tiffany would sneer whenever she walked by, and would watch to see if I was going to break down in the middle of the hallway. I would simply give her an unaffected smile and keep walking. She would get what was coming to her when the time was right.

I didn't get anymore offers to "hook up", but I had an inkling that it had something to do with Jack and Derek. Every time a random guy would give me a suggestive look, both of them would glare. Both boys were intimidating if they needed to be. I was grateful towards them. I knew they wouldn't always be there though, and figured something was just lurking out of sight.

Jillian, Samantha, and I had signed up for the county recreational department's softball league in the middle of the week, and we had our first practice later this evening.

"Are you excited?" Samantha asked, as we had sat at lunch earlier today.

"Yeah. I really am. I haven't played in a while, so I hope I'm not too rusty," I replied.

"Don't worry. I'm sure you'll be great. Plus, it's just rec league. It's not like we're playing to be all-stars or something. Well, at least not most of us. We have fun."

I had gotten the carnival pictures printed and copied, and couldn't wait to show Kim. Jillian and Samantha had already gotten their copies when I had taken them to school, and I knew Kim would love the ones of her and Jared. I also made a few extra copies of the others in case the guys wanted any. I grabbed the entire stack and put them in an envelop. I was heading over there now, hoping Emily or Jared would be able to give them to her.

Not feeling like running, I hopped into my Jeep and drove toward La Push. I turned up the radio as a song I liked came on and sang along softly. Driving was second to running in activities that I loved. Rolling with the windows down and radio blaring on a warm summer day felt freeing. It gave the intensity and speed that running alone couldn't give, knowing that one wrong swerve or turn could turn dangerous.

I pulled off the road at Sam and Emily's, grabbed the envelop of pictures, and headed up to the front door. Surprisingly, no one was in the yard, and for the first time, I actually had to knock on the door. I gave it three quick raps, then heard footsteps.

"Hey, Molly!" Emily greeted warmly as she opened the door. "Come on in. None of the boys are here, but I'm sure they will be here fairly soon. Kim and I were chatting."

"Oh Kim's here? That's great," I said, meaning it. I would be able to be the one to show her the pictures.

"Hi, Molly," Kim said, as I entered the dining room with Emily and took a seat at the table.

"Hey, Kim. I'm so glad you're here. I have the pictures from the carnival." I held up the envelop as proof.

"Ooh, yay! Let's see!"

I started pulling them out of the envelop, and Kim and Emily would say all the appropriate things. Kim would gush at the ones of Jared and herself, and they would both compliment the pictures of everyone else. Every time I would get to a picture of Paul and me, I would deftly slip it to the bottom of the stack. I still wasn't so sure about them.

"Aww, look at this one of Quil and Claire," Emily smiled lovingly. It was an adorable picture. Claire was up on one of Quil's shoulders and he was grinning wildly at her.

When we reached the bottom of the pile, I tucked the remaining few back into the envelop as the others were spread across the table.

"Molly, these are really fantastic pictures. You are very talented," Emily doted, glancing across the table at all of them again.

"Too bad Paul was being such a stinker, and wouldn't let you take his picture," Kim grumbled.

"Yeah," I agreed, unintentionally fingering the envelop with the pictures of us inside.

"What are those?"

"Oh, uh, j-just some extras, you know," I stammered out.

"Really," Kim mused, disbelievingly. "Hey, Paul!" She said looking over my shoulder.

I turned my head quickly, and then felt the envelop being torn from my grasp. "Ugh," I groaned, turning back towards them. "I can't believe I fell for that!"

"Muahaha," Kim mock-evil laughed.

Emily scooted closer to have a look as Kim took the pictures out. They flipped through the few that were there slowly, taking a longer time than I though necessary to look at each one. When they finally looked back up, they were both grinning like maniacs.

"Those are great, Molly," Kim said, as I tried to avoid them.

"Really," Emily said, placing her hand on top of mine with a wide smile. "Really great."

_Do they know something I don't?_ I thought. Just then the door burst open and the guys literally started flooding in. I quickly reached across the table and took the pictures out of Kim's hand.

"Well, hello ladies," Embry greeted as the first one through the door. "What are you up to?"

"Oh, Molly brought the carnival pictures over. See?" Kim asked, holding a pictures of Jared and herself up to Jared as he came to stand behind her. He took it from her and smiled.

"These are really good," he complimented me.

The other guys squeezed in as well, Paul coming to stand on one side of me. He smiled down at me, and I couldn't help but smile back.

"You guys can keep any of them that you want, and if you need more I can make more copies. They are all on my computer at home," I informed them.

"Which ones do you have, Molly?" Quil asked, nodding to the pictures I had not put back in the envelop and had forgotten I was holding.

"Oh, these are, uh," but before I could come up with yet another flimsy excuse they were once again jerked from my hands. "Don't!" I tried to snatch them back from Jacob, but I knew it was futile since he significantly towered over me. I heard the others snicker slightly, and even Paul chuckled a bit before intervening.

"Alright, man. Leave her alone," Paul grabbed the pictures from Jacob, and made to hand them back to me, but not before glancing at them. As he noticed what they were, he withdrew them back so he could take a closer look. The smile slowly slipped off his face as he looked at them.

When he finished, after what seemed like an eternity to me, he slowly handed them back. His eyebrows were furrowed and he was staring at me harder than I liked.

"I got to get going. We're starting softball practice tonight," I hurriedly excused myself, intimidated by Paul's stare. "I'm glad you liked the pictures. Bye."

I turned and flew out the door. _Why did I even bring those pictures?_ I thought. _He probably realized that I felt something for him that he didn't for me. I was so stupid!_ My hand was on the handle of my Jeep door when I heard someone coming outside.

"Molly!" he called.

I took a deep breath and turned to see Paul jogging towards me. He stopped in front of me, and we just stared at each other for a moment. I waited for him to say something, but he reached out and took the pictures from me again. He flipped the first couple then held up the one of him holding me bridal-style with our faces close together so it was facing me.

"Can I have this?" he asked hopefully.

His words shocked me. I wasn't expecting that at all after his initial reaction.

"S-sure," I answered uncertainly.

His broad grin once again graced his features as he said, "Thanks."

"No problem," I said, turning toward my Jeep once again, but this time I felt his hand lightly on my arm. I faced him again, and he was still smiling, but much softer now.

His eyes bore into mine, and I couldn't help but get caught up in the blazing look. He slowly started to leaned in, then gently kissed my temple. My breath caught, and my heart started beating erratically in my chest.

He leaned out again, grinning at my reaction. "See you later," he said softly, before turning and jogging back to the house.

"Bye," I all but whispered. I felt my own lips tug up into an involuntary smile, and I grinned like an idiot the entire way home.

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**a/n: SURPRISE!! we have progress!!! no, it wasn't a full on kiss, but it was still cute, and you know it ;) i was going to put the softball practice stuff in this chapter, but i felt it would be too much and that we need to focus on Paul being a sweetie for a moment :D. true, it made this chapter shorter, but i think we will live. next chapter will be softball and some more DRAMA!!!**

**also, a few of you mentioned Paul's POV story in your reviews saying you would love to see it, and that's great! i am planning on doing it, but as of right now don't expect it soon. I think I want to finish Molly's side first, but i'm not fully decided yet. i'll let you know :D REVIEW!!! much love!!  
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	10. Chapter 10

**a/n: look! another update! don't you love me? :D i have to say that i've been planning this chapter for a while, but when I actually started writing it, it took on a wild mind of it's own! it's definitely one of my longest yet. last chapter didn't get as many reviews, but then again it hasn't taken me as long to update, so hopefully i well get a lot for this chapter since it's long and i'm still striving for my 200 reviews goal :). thank you so much for the great reviews. Special shout-out to Moonlight-Wolfe for the always long reviews. I love knowing your favorite part of each chapter! THANKS! hope you all enjoy!

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"What are you so happy about?" Mom asked me when I walked through the door, still smiling insanely.

"Oh, I'm just excited about softball practice tonight," I played off nicely, even though my heart was still threatening to burst out of my chest any second. "It'll be fun, I think."

I walked into the kitchen and started making a sandwich. "I'm just going to eat something light that way I don't get sick during practice. I'm sure we'll be running a lot."

"That's probably a good idea, I guess," Mom answered absentmindedly as she continued to read a magazine.

I leaned against the counter and watched my mom as I ate. She seemed so different, yet exactly the same. I thought back to how things were when I was little and wondered how they had gone so downhill. We used to be the picture of perfection in the societal eye. The prestigious doctor and esteemed nurse with their little girl that had her father's blue eyes and her mother's brown hair. We'd do family outings like we were one of those fake families put together for pictures to go into new picture frames at the store. I enjoyed it at the time because I was little and thought that was how we were supposed to be. As I got older, though, it seemed as if my mother and I had less and less in common. I didn't dress appropriately enough for the family, or my tom-boyish tendencies were not attractive. I didn't care. I liked who I was, who I am.

My father was never around much as I got older, so I didn't have a connection with either of my parents. He was always working, making money to keep up with our "demanding lifestyle." I never wanted anything materialistic because it would always be presented to me before I had a chance to want it. I got a new car when I turned 16, new equipment for when I wanted to play softball, new cameras and computers. Anything. He didn't know that what I really wanted was something he couldn't buy me. I wanted for him to want to go for a drive with me in the new car, for him to show up at my games and cheer for me, to act like I was his daughter at all...for either of them to do that.

Soon their fighting was unbearable, and I drifted into the background for them. White noise that could be heard but tuned out effectively. No one, in the house anyway, was surprised when the divorce was final. I was to live with Mom because Dad's job was too demanding. I marveled at the excuse considering I was normally left with the in-house staff anyway or a nanny while my parents were at conferences or parties. It didn't matter to me much. I didn't expect my relationship with either of them to become magically repaired. I hadn't even heard much from my dad since I left besides the occasion short phone call or email.

My mother did try in the very beginning when she realized I was what she had in life. It didn't last long though. I knew she was hurt by my father's adultery. I could see it when she looked in my eyes and saw him staring back at her and not her teenage daughter. She started dating to cover up the pain. I knew it was still there, but it seemed I was the last person that she wanted to try to open up with. Even though I was probably the only one that could truly help her. Instead she thought she would find solace in men and alcohol. It started getting out of hand,and soon enough my uncle, her brother, had to step in and take action. She claimed she wasn't an alcoholic, and I believed that. She didn't constantly have to have a drink and could have a drink without having to have 'just one more', but she sometimes didn't know when to stop.

I came back from my musings with a quiet sigh. Mom and I didn't fight all the time, but when we did, they could be explosive. I was, after all, a part of both of them, and they could fight _well_.

"Do you need anything before I go?" I asked her as I put my plate in the sink.

"No," she answered simply.

"Ok," I said, heading upstairs to change. I put on some athletic shorts, an old t-shirt, and my tennis shoes. I dug through my closet and found my bat bag. I made sure my glove, helmet, cleats, and bat were inside before heading back downstairs.

"See you later, Mom. Practice is at 7 and probably won't be over until 9 or after, so you'll probably be gone before I get back."

"Alright. Have fun," she said, waving me out the door.

When I arrived at the recreation department, I parked near the softball fields and walked to where I could make out Jill and Samantha.

"Hey, guys," I said, throwing my bag down and sitting on the ground beside them where they were stretching.

"Hey, Mollipop," Jillie greeted as I pulled on my cleats before stretching out my legs with them.

"So what are we in for today?" I asked, glancing around at the other girls on the team. I recognized most of the faces from school, but scattered about were a few I didn't recognize.

"Well, we're waiting for Jason. He's the coach with Tanner as his assistant coach," Sam answered, while rolling her eyes at the Tanner part.

"Not to mention that Jason is 20 and absolutely gorgeous!" Jill inserted. Even Samantha let out a breathy sigh.

"Excuse me, but don't you both have boyfriends?" I questioned with raised eyebrows.

"Hey, that doesn't mean we can't look and appreciate God's work," Jill said with a grin. "Speaking of God's work..." She nodded over my shoulder.

I turned and saw a lean, but muscular guy that could pass as 20 but looked slightly younger. He had tousled sandy blond hair and popping green eyes. I had to be honest with myself: he was not difficult to look at. But, to also be honest with myself: his wouldn't be the face constantly on my mind. That face belonged to a tall, strong Quileute with short black hair, russet skin, deep, dark eyes, and a smile that could kill when he let it out.

I watched as he pulled a large black bag out of the back of his truck and flung it over his shoulder as he walked onto the field. I also noticed Tanner not far behind, carrying a clipboard.

"Let's gather up!" Jason yelled. We all made our way to the pitcher's mound where he was standing and waited for him to give us instructions. "Alright, I see we have most of the old crowd back, but for those of you that might not know," he looked at me quickly before continuing,"My name is Jason Hicks and I'll be your coach. Call me Jason, Coach, Hicks, whatever, it doesn't matter. We're gonna have a lot of fun, and if we work hard, we're gonna beat the Panthers this year, right?"

Everyone started cheering and clapping. I assumed that the Panthers was the rival team Samantha had mentioned that had beaten them every year.

"That's what I thought," Jason continued with an easy smile. "Well, we're just gonna start off with some conditioning for the first few practices. Our first game is in two weeks, and we've got to make sure we're in shape. Line up in front of Tanner here, and he'll take your name, requested number, and jersey size. As soon as you give him your information start making laps around the field. Ready?" Jason yelled, clapping his hands, and received another cheer from his team.

It was easy to like Jason. You could tell his pep talk was actually sincere, and he got everyone fired up to work.

We all formed a line in front of Tanner as Jason stood beside him with Jill, Sam, and me near the front-middle. Things were going smoothly, and my legs were already itching to start laps after Jason's speech. Jill and Sam stepped up and Tanner quickly wrote down their names having already known them, then their number and sizes.

"Molly Bridges," I said when I stepped up as Tanner had his head down finishing up scribbling something down.

He looked up when I said my name. "Molly," he said almost coldly.

"Tanner," I said lightly. He stared at me for a minute with a raised eyebrow.

"Is there a problem here?" Jason asked uncertainly.

"Nope," I said evenly, earning a hard look from Tanner.

"I think we might need some extra work on this one, Jason," he said mockingly.

"Well, we'll just see how things go, alright?" Jason decided, effectively ending anything else Tanner might have had up his sleeve.

"Number 25 and a small jersey," I stated, then took off running to catch up with Jillie and Sam, who were already halfway around the field. I caught up with them in no time.

"Tanner causing trouble?" Samantha asked observantly.

"Yeah. Trying to get a rise out of me, I guess. Telling Jason that I 'might need some extra work,'" I scoffed.

"Gosh, he has gotten so jerky. I guess we just forgot how he really is, and now that he's someone new to try to look like a badass in front of, it's coming out again," Jill stated.

"Well, I wish he would get over himself."

We finished running three complete laps around the entire field when Jason called everyone in again."OK, now we're gonna work on some base running. I'll be at home plate and Tanner will be on second. Each of you will start at first base, then I will hit the ball towards Tanner and you have to try to avoid the out. Got it?" We all gave him the affirmative. "Who's up first?"

We all made another line, but this time at first base. I was closer to the front this time around. The first girl was up.

"Out!" Jason yelled from home plate, making a fist in the air as the 'out' sign. Tanner had stepped on the base before she got there. "Pick up the pace a little, Bridget, and you could have had it."

The next girl got into position on first as Jason tossed the ball in the air and hit it towards Tanner. She took off running, but tripped on her untied shoelace, causing her to stumble a bit.

"Out! Come on, Lindsay, make sure those cleats are tied. We don't need you getting hurt before we even start," he admonished with a friendly smile.

Girl number three was another out as well. "Ladies! What are we doing?" Jason asked slightly exasperated.

It was my turn next. I put my back foot on the edge of the base as I positioned myself to run. I hear the slight crack of Jason's bat as he hit a grounder towards second base and took off running. Tanner scooped up the ball in his glove and was about to step on the base. I bent my leg and fell into an easy slide, touching the base and knocking Tanner's foot just in time. He fell to the ground beside me amongst the dust. We both turned our heads toward Jason to catch his verdict.

He cut both his hands through the air horizontally, "Safe!"

I smiled widely and jumped up. I dusted off my legs and shorts, then offered Tanner my hand. He stared at it for split second before ignoring it and pushing himself up. I shrugged, and made my way back to the group, giving Jill a high-five as I passed her with a smirk.

"Good hustle, Molly," Jason praised.

The rest of practice went by swiftly with all of us having a good time and getting dirty. "Let's huddle up, team!" Jason called. "That was a great practice. I can see we've got a few things we need to work on, but that's what practice is for. You are all doing really great. Next practice will be next weekend. We'll have practices closer together once school is out. Alright, hands in and Falcons on three."

We all placed a hand on top of Jason's outstretched one. "1,2,3..."

"Falcons!" We all yelled and threw our hand in the air.

We all started to migrate back toward our things when I heard Jason call out,"Molly! Can you hang back a sec?"

"Sure," I replied before turning back toward Jill and Sam. "I'll see you guys on Monday."

"Later," they said, giving a small wave in return.

"What's up, Coach?" I questioned when most of the others had moved toward their cars.

"Well, I just wanted to ask you something, and you don't have to answer if you'd rather not," Jason started amiably. I nodded for him to continue. "Is there a problem between you and Tanner?"

"Oh. Let's just say that Tanner and I don't exactly have the same feelings toward each other," I supplied.

"Ah. Unrequited love?" he joked.

"Hardly. I tried to let him know that I wasn't interested. He didn't want to listen. Some things happened that probably could have been avoided, but long story short, we aren't exactly on the best of terms," I stated formally.

"Is it going to be a problem?" Jason asked seriously.

"It really shouldn't be. I'll be sure to let you know if it's going to be an issue. I don't want the team to suffer because of me."

"I'd appreciate that. I don't think the team will be suffering because of you, however. You've really got some talent. I can see that already."

"Thanks. I try my best."

"Well, keep it up. Good practice. See you next week," he said in dismissal, clapping me on the shoulder.

"See ya," I said and made my way back to my Jeep, throwing my bag in the back, as Jason went to turn off the lights to the field.

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It was after 9:30 when I got home, just as I had thought, but I was surprised to see my mom's car still in the driveway. I grabbed my stuff and entered the house, deciding to take a quick shower before letting Boomer inside. First, however, I went to the dining room and kitchen to see if my mom was there.

"Mom?" I called as I came in. She wasn't there. I ventured on down the hall and saw her bedroom door shut, but a strip of light coming out from underneath. I decided not to bother her, assuming she was running late for work, and headed up to take a shower.

It felt nice to get out of those dusty and dirty clothes and wash my sweaty hair. The water running down to the drain was a reddish-brown as the field dirt was coming off. I stepped out of the shower when I was finished and quickly toweled off. After rubbing on some body lotion, I slid on another pair of black athletic shorts to sleep in and a plain white, form-fitting t-shirt. Afterward, I towel dried my hair, and went to my room. I stepped back into my tennis shoes so my feet wouldn't get dirty when I went to get Boomer.

As I descended the stairs, I heard the door to my mother's room open. I turned and saw her coming out dressed in her bathrobe, a half-empty glass and a bottle of brownish liquid in her hands.

"Oh, you're back," she said listlessly.

I took in her appearance. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy. She shuffled toward the kitchen while running a hand through her matted hair. She was drunk. "Mom?" I ventured. "Are you ok?" I wondered what could have happened while I was gone to make her do this.

"No, Molly," she snapped my name harshly, while setting her glass and the bottle on the table. "I am _not_ ok."

"What happened?" I asked, bewildered. She had gotten so much better about the drinking.

"Your father called," she spat out. "He's getting _married_."

"You're joking!" I said before I could stop myself.

My mother whirled around, and I barely had time to register her hand flying towards me before it connected with my face, catching me on the side of the mouth. My head snapped to the side and the coppery taste of blood filled my mouth.

"Do I look like I'm joking?!" she shrieked at me. "He's going off and marrying that bitch, and he wants **_you_** to be there!" She raised her hand again, but I quickly sidestepped her, causing her to stumble. "Get out! Just get _out_!"

"But, Mom-" I tried, backing up a few steps and rapidly blinking my stinging eyes.

"**OUT**!" She tried to lunge at me, but I swiftly turned and my feet pounded toward the door. I heard a chair crash to the floor as the door slammed behind me.

I didn't stop running until I reached the road and could no longer see the house. My heart was pounding, and my breath was heavy. Adrenaline was pumping through my veins, making me shaky. I took a deep breath and the cool night air stung my lungs. It was much colder out than it had been, and I wasn't able to get a jacket in my haste to get out.

My mouth and cheek were throbbing, and my chin felt sticky. I reached up to wipe at it with the back of my hand, and it came away red with blood. I spit trying to get rid of any excess blood and the coppery taste in my mouth. It didn't help much at all. I prodded my lip gingerly and winced. It was already swelling.

I swallowed hard around the lump in my throat, and stood in the road for a moment deliberating on what I could do. The air was causing me to shiver as I stood in my shorts and t-shirt. The moon was blocked by the ever cloudy sky, making it even darker. I had to decide quickly. I couldn't go home, and there was only one other place that I could reach in minimal time without my Jeep.

I took a deep, shaky breath and started toward La Push. I wiped at my mouth again, but it didn't do any good because it was still bleeding. The back of my hand was covered in blood. I heard what sounded like a wolf howl in the distance, and quickened my pace around the bend toward Sam and Emily's.

When their house came into sight, I could make out two people sitting on the swing under the porch light. I knew it was Sam and Emily, and they looked quite content. I had almost decided to keep walking when Sam's head turned in my direction.

"Molly? Is that you?" he called.

_Damn. How was I going to explain this?_ "Uh, yeah. It's me." I entered there yard, stopping just beyond the pool of light cast by the porch bulb.

"What are you doing out this late? And with no jacket! You must be freezing," Emily's motherly side kicked in.

"It's fine. I didn't mean to bother you," I mumbled.

"Don't be silly," she said, beckoning me forward. "The boys should be back any- Molly!" I had just stepped forward into the light at her beckoning. "What happened?" She stood up quickly, hastening me onto the porch.

Sam stood as well. "Is that a hand print?" he asked, moving my face slightly toward the light. I didn't answer him. "Em, they others will be here soon. Will you take her inside?"

Emily steered me inside to the bathroom, where I looked at myself in the mirror. My lip was swollen and bloody, and there was still some blood on my chin. There was only a small, but noticeable, cut on my lip, but I knew most of the blood was coming from a larger cut inside my mouth. I turned my head and there was indeed a mean red hand print across my cheek, and a bruise was forming from the corner of my mouth toward my cheek. The blood on my hand also looked worse under the bathroom lights. I groaned at my reflection. I looked terrible.

"Here," Emily caught my attention. She was holding some rubbing alcohol and a wash cloth.

"I can do it, if you don't mind," I told her politely.

She looked at me for a long moment, then nodded her head. "I'll get you some ice." She set the supplies on the counter and moved toward the door. "Molly, you might not want to tell us what happened, but Paul will-" She was interrupted by the slam of the front door causing us both to jump. She gave me a pointed look then shut the door behind her.

I quickly ran some water on the wash cloth and put a little alcohol on it before wiping at my chin. The rubbing alcohol made the dried blood come off easier. When I finished my face, I spit into the sink, and it came out bloody. I quickly washed it down.

Soon I heard several pairs of feet thundering toward the bathroom. "Molly?!" It was Paul. I froze. Then he was banging on the door, making the hinges rattle. "Molly! Open the door!" I could vaguely hear someone telling him he needed to calm down. I thought it would be a good idea too, remembering his temper.

"Please calm down, Paul," I said. I was about to have a nervous breakdown as it was.

"Sam said you were hurt! Open the door now!" he was still yelling. I didn't say anything for a moment, and it became quiet outside the door, then I heard a very soft, "Please?"

I slowly reached over and barely opened the door. "Just give me a minute, please," I said, my voice shaking, as he pushed the door open. I turned back to the sink and out of the corner of my eye, I could see him taking in the bloody wash cloth, my blood covered hand, and the pink-tinged water going down the sink. I used my hair to shield my face.

"It's just a cut," I said thickly, unevenly.

"Oh dear God," he said as he took in all the viewable blood stains. I couldn't even imagine what was running through his head.

My shaky hands scrubbed the blood from the back of my hand and washed it all down the sink. I was proud of myself for staying as composed as I had with all things considered.

I turned off the sink when I finished and dried my hands on a nearby towel. I took a deep breath, gripping the edge of the sink tightly before turning to fully look at Paul.

"Oh my God," he said again as he looked at me. A million emotions were flashing across his face. He looked as if he wanted to hug me, but there were also angry flames burning in his eyes. I turned my head away from him slightly, and I heard him gasp, "Someone hit you?!" he shouted. He had seen the hand print. "Molly, what happened? Tell me!"

I looked up when a heard the door rattling. Paul's entire body was visibly shaking, and his hand on the doorknob was causing the door to shake with him. My eyes widen. "Paul?" I said meekly. It was scary.

"Sam! Get Paul!" Jacob yelled from the hallway.

"Paul!" Sam yelling running back down the hall. They grabbed Paul and started pulling him down the hallway away from me. I could hear various voices telling him he needed to calm down, saying my name, and then I heard the backdoor shut. I stood there for a moment, stunned.

"Molly?" I heard Emily's worried voice. "Are you alright?"

_What the hell just happened?_ I wanted to ask. Instead I just nodded my head.

"Come into the kitchen. I've gotten you some ice," she put her arm on my shoulders and we walked into the kitchen.

"Is Paul ok?" I asked quietly as I leaned against the counter.

"He'll be fine," she said wrapping some ice in a towel for me. "It's you we're worried about. Are you sure you're alright?" she asked again. Again I nodded, then gently put the ice on my swollen mouth and cheek.

"Thank you, Emily," I said sincerely, blinking away more tears.

"Oh, it's not problem, sweetheart," she said pulling me into a hug. I laid the ice on the counter and hugged her back.

Another few minutes passed, and the backdoor opened once again. Jacob, Quil, and Embry came in first, looking serious. Their eyes softened when they looked at me, but I could see a flash of anger in their eyes as well. Finally Sam came in followed by a sullen looking Paul.

Sam motioned to Emily to follow him, but Emily stayed and gave him a pointed look. He nodded his head and they apparently finished their silent conversation because she left the room with him. Now it was just me and Paul.

He stood by the door looking at the floor for a moment, then slowly looked up at me. "Oh my God," he said for the third time. This time, though, his face just looked pained and concerned. He crossed the room in just a couple long strides and pulled me into his arms. He wrapped one arm around my waist and the other hand held my head to his chest, softly stroking my hair and carefully minding my cheek.

He held me tightly for an unmeasurable amount of time before pulling away but keeping his hands on my arms. "What happened?" he asked, his brows furrowed and eyes full of pain. "Who hit you?" he asked that question with slightly more difficulty.

I looked away for a moment and took a deep breath. "My mother," I whispered thickly.

"What?!" he exploded, but quickly quieted when he noticed me flinch away from him. "Sorry," he apologized, pulling me into another hug. "Why would she do that?"

"She was upset because my dad called and said he was getting remarried. He wants me to be there," I explained.

"I understand that that would upset her, but to hit you-"

"She was drunk," I sniffed, and felt a tear escape. Paul raised his large hand and softly wiped it away. He was extremely gentle for someone so huge. "She screamed at me to get out, and I came here. You...you make me feel safe," I added quietly, blushing lightly.

"Oh, Molly," he hugged me tightly and dropped a kiss on top of my head. "Let's go sit down." I knew he knew there was nothing he could say.

He picked up the slightly melted ice from the counter top and handed it back to me, before taking my hand and leading me to the living room where everyone else was seated watching tv. Although, it seemed to me that they were all sitting too stiffly to actually be watching it. Paul sat down on the sofa and pulled me down sideways on his lap. I was surprised by this action, but wasn't about to complain. I slid off my shoes so I wouldn't get the sofa dirty, and Paul wrapped his arms around me. I shivered violently against his sudden warmth, realizing how cold I truly was.

"Lord, you're freezing," Paul said, chaffing my legs with his hand before pulling me tighter against him. I graciously snuggled in closer.

After a while, I took the ice from my lip and gently touched it again.

"Let me see?" Paul asked. I turned my face toward him. His face turned hard, and I felt his chest vibrate, then he guided my hand to put the ice back on.

"That bad, huh?" I asked, setting the ice against my face. He just tightened his hold on me in response.

We all sat quietly through a few half-hour shows, the ice long melted, before Sam and Emily decided to turn in. "Stay as long as you like, Molly," Emily offered.

"Thanks, Emily," I said gratefully. "Good night, Sam."

"Good night, Moll," Sam returned before looking at Paul who nodded. _More silent conversations_, I thought.

Jacob, Quil and Embry had all drifted out as well, and not long after they left, I turned to look at Paul. He looked back at me expectantly. "I need to go home."

* * *

**a/n: well wasn't that just drama, drama, _drama._ i must say though that i think this is my favorite chapter. i've been wanting to write it for so long and i think it actually lived up to my hopes and expectations. still please let me know what you think and whether it lived up to your expectations or not. we also finally got some more back story on Molly. At first i had wanted it to be something she revealed to Paul, but I realized i hadn't really set it up that way and it wasn't like she was keeping her dark past from him completely or something. I still may have her divulge some more about herself directly to him next chapter or so. review!! much love!!**


	11. Chapter 11

**a/n: we hit 203 reviews!! AWESOME!!! I Am Switzerland101 left the 200th review, so thanks!! that really is amazing, and i can't tell you how happy i am about it. that's the most reviews i have gotten for a story before. i'm averaging about 20 reviews per chapter in this story which is great, but i think we could do better :D so far, i've gotten over 11,000 hits, 63 favs, and 137 alerts for this story. so here is the next chapter, and there isn't as much dialog as the other chapters, but it gives more insight into Molly's head. i do think you will really enjoy it though -hint hint-. review!!  
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* * *

Paul looked at me incredulously for a moment, then said "Home? Are you crazy?"

"Paul," I sighed. This wasn't something I was going to fight him over. I made to lean off the couch to get my shoes, but Paul's arms tightened around me.

"No, Molly," he said gently, yet firmly. "I can't just let you go back there after what she did."

I looked into his eyes and saw that they were deadly serious, but held another surprising emotion. He was scared. I could feel my own expression soften as I realized this. What was he afraid of?

As if sensing my unasked question, he said softly,"I can't let her hurt you again."

There was the undying concern for me again. I had yet to understand where it was coming from. "Paul," I said just as softly, needing to be convincing. I couldn't just never go home again. "It's my home. I have to go back. Plus it's really late, and she probably won't even be up anymore."

His eyes desperately searched my face for a few long moments. "I can't make you stay, can I?" he concluded with a sad smile.

I just shook my head, feeling guilty for making him sad when all he was trying to do was make sure I was safe. He nodded back at me in acceptance, and let me stand. As soon as I slid my feet into my shoes, however, Paul put his hands on my waist and picked me up as if I weighed nothing.

"What are you doing?" I asked as he set me, standing, on the edge of the couch.

"Give me your arms," he instructed instead of answering, turning so his back was facing me.

"Why?" I said, leaning back slightly.

"Molly," he huffed,"Don't be difficult." He reached behind him and grabbed one of my arms in each of his hands before pulling them around his neck. "Hold on," he said, and before I could respond, he leaned forward slightly causing my feet to lift up from the couch.

"Paul!" I gasped, quickly clasping my hands in front of his neck as he hooked his arms under my knees, bringing them to his sides. "I can walk you know. You don't have to give me a piggy-back ride. My mom hit me in the face, not the legs." I felt him tense as the words left my mouth, and I bit my lip thinking I shouldn't have said that. He relaxed quickly though.

"Like you said," he said, walking towards the front door as if I hadn't made that last comment,"it's late. I'm sure you're tired after everything. Just let me carry you. It's not like you're heavy."

I snorted at that last comment. "You know," I started, "you are really cramping my independent style."

"Maybe you are too independent for your own good," he teased back, but there was a serious undertone that I caught. "Besides don't girls like to be treated like princesses? People always fawning over them and giving them attention."

"Oh yes, I just love for people to fawn over me," I said sarcastically. "Well, if I'm the princess, then that makes you my court jester, you know." I smirked as I imagined the look on his face.

"Court jester," he said disbelievingly as he stepped off the dewy grass and onto the blacktop of the road. "Whatever."

"Well, if you don't want to be the court jester then I don't see anymore openings for you in my kingdom," I informed him in a terrible British accent. "Sorry," I said condescendingly, patting his chest with one of my hands._ Gosh, he's muscular_, I involuntarily thought.

"Oh, really?" he said, bouncing me up to get a better grip and causing me to squeal in surprise. His honey-coated laugh told me he did it on purpose.

"Do you have a better idea?" I stretched my neck, resting my chin on his shoulder so I could see the side of his face.

"Of course," he said, turning his head to look at me. I made a waving motion with my hand for him to continue. Without pausing a step, he reached around and grabbed me off his back, smoothly swinging me so he was holding me bridal-style close to his chest, then he said, in complete seriousness, "_I_ am your knight in shining armor, babes." He added on the pet name, and there was a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth as if he wanted to make it sound less serious, but it just made his statement that much more sincere.

I couldn't help the small lump in my throat that formed when I realized that he actually meant what he said, and we weren't just playing a game anymore. I thought of how he'd rescued me from Tanner, stayed with me after my mom insulted me, made sure I was alright when Tiffany started the rumors, and now, making sure I got home safely.

"That you are," I whispered, afraid if spoken loudly the words would lose their meaning. I turned into his chest, reveling in his warmth against the cold night, and he pulled me close, resting his chin on the top of my head. We didn't speak the rest of the way to my house, and I could barely tell Paul was walking. It just felt like I was floating.

Paul set me down gently on the front porch, and I held my breath as I tried the knob, exhaling when I realized she hadn't locked me out whether on purpose or not. I looked at Paul and held a finger to my lips momentarily telling him to be quiet.

We silently moved through the living room and into the kitchen, not spotting my mom yet. As I looked around, I saw one of the table chairs had been knocked sideways on the floor, and there was also a broken glass on the ground surrounded by a brownish pool that had turned sticky over the hours. I exhaled loudly again and decided I would deal with that in a moment. I needed to find my mom first.

I turned and went down the hallway, acutely aware of Paul's presence as he followed soundlessly behind me. The door to my mom's room was ajar and the light was on. I prayed she was in there and that that wasn't just how she had left it after chasing me out of the house. I gingerly pushed it open, and saw her passed out on the bed with a bottle on the night stand and an almost empty glass balancing precariously in her clutched hand.

I crossed the room, leaving Paul in the doorway, and took the glass from Mom's hand. I noticed her steady deep breathing, and my shoulders slumped in a relief I hadn't realized I needed. I set it beside the bottle on the night stand before positioning her so she was on her stomach and her head on the pillows. I quickly grabbed a blanket and covered her with it, then grabbed the glass and bottle before turning out the light and exiting the room. I didn't even glance at Paul as I headed back down the hall. I didn't want to see the look in his eyes as he watched me, it dawning on him that I seemed far more practiced in doing this than I should be.

Sadly enough, I did have a basic routine for this, only needing to be tweaked when there were new elements that needed to be taken care of. I went straight to the sink and dumped the rest of the contents of the bottle down the drain, which I noticed wasn't very much. I set the glass in the sink and threw the bottle in the trash can. After that I grabbed the broom from the corner, straightened the chair back up, and began sweeping up the broken glass. My shoes were sticking slightly to the linoleum as I walked through the almost dried puddle. I dumped the glass shards in the trash can as well, then grabbed a cloth and wet it before starting to scrub the floor. I could see Paul's shoes from the corner of my eye as he stood just at the edge of the kitchen as if afraid to intrude. I didn't blame him. This was part of the world I knew, and I didn't want to bring him in this far.

I straighten back up, but I knew I wasn't finished. If my mother had planned on getting drunk, then she had probably gone out and gotten more alcohol before her binge. I went to the cabinet where I knew she usually kept a bottle or so, but it was empty. This didn't deter me, however, into thinking she hadn't gotten anymore. She had just hidden it. I went through every cabinet, looking behind every unused pot or pan, but found nothing. I knew she wouldn't have put it anywhere else in the house, even as a drunk she didn't want to be that distasteful. I put my hands on my hips and thought for a moment, looking around with a furrowed brow. I looked up at the higher cabinets where I hadn't found anything inside, then looked higher. _Bingo_, I thought.

I grabbed one of the table chairs and dragged it to the edge of the counter. I stepped up into it and made to step up again onto the counter top.

"Molly," Paul spoke for the first time since we had gotten there. I looked at him, and he looked as if he wanted to say something, but instead just walked over to me. He put his hands on my waist as I stepped onto the counter making sure I wasn't about to fall.

I could feel his warm hands through my shirt, but would have to think about that later. I ran my hand over the top of the high cabinets and the tips of my fingers hit something cool and hard, causing it to roll away from me slightly, just out of my reach.

"Can you give me a boost?" I asked, looking down at Paul.

He tightened his grip on my waist and lifted me up slightly. I stretched out my arm fully and grabbed the offending bottle. Instead of allowing me to step back into the chair, Paul just picked me up off the counter and set me on my feet. I glanced at the label on the bottle and noticed that it was harder stuff than what she usually drinks. I cringed, happy that she hadn't gotten to it and that I found it. I wondered what was so inviting about it...

I grabbed the top of the bottle and broke the seal, then twisted the top all the way off. I then walked over to the sink and pour the entire contents of the bottle down the drain. It _glug-_ed out of the bottle like it was breathing it's last breaths. I put the hand not holding the emptying bottle on the edge of the sink and leaned against it as I watched the clear liquid drain, wishing I didn't have to do this.

When I was satisfied that it was fully empty, I unceremoniously screwed the cap back on after rinsing it out, and tossed it into the trash as well. I heard it clank against the other bottle, and the noise made me feel slightly better. I then went to another cabinet and grabbed some aspirin and filled a glass with water. I went back to my mother's room and silently set it on the night stand. She would be needing that in the morning.

I finally turned back toward Paul who I knew had been watching me the entire time. "Will you go downstairs and let Boomer in for me, please?" I asked, wiping my hands on my shorts. "I'm gonna go upstairs for a minute, but I'll be down there soon."

"Sure," he said, reaching out and squeezing my hand quickly before disappearing down the stairway.

I walked up the other set of stairs toward my room. When I got there, I pulled off my shorts and grabbed a pair of cotton pajama bottoms, needing the little extra warmth. I crossed the hall into the bathroom and surveyed myself in the mirror fully. The ice had helped the swelling, and the bruising was not nearly as dark as it would have been. All in all, it looked far better than it did when I first looked in the mirror at Sam and Emily's, and hopefully could be easily covered by make-up for school. The cut on my lip was hardly noticeable already. I pulled my lip out slightly so I could see the damage inside my mouth. The cut there was jagged and thick, but not very long. It looked horrendous, but would more than likely heal quickly and no one would be able to see it.

I quickly took out my contacts and grabbed my black rimmed glasses before cutting out the lights and going down the two sets of stairs to the basement.

As soon as I turned into the room, Boomer jumped up on me and tried to lick my face. "Oh, Boomer, I'm so sorry you had to stay out there," I told him, rubbing his fur and scratching behind his ears. "You must be starving." I quickly went into the laundry room where I kept his bag of food and filled up his bowl. Leaving him to eat, I went back into the room where Paul was standing with a surprising smirk on his face.

"What?" I asked cautiously, eying him suspiciously.

"You just look cute. That's all," he said, smiling a little wider.

I remembered my pj pants and glasses that people rarely saw me in, and my cheeks reddened. "Thanks," I mumbled. "You know, Paul, you can go home if you want. Mom's passed out in full drunken stupor, and it's really late."

"Do you want me to go?" he asked, crossing his broad arms across his even broader chest condescendingly.

I hesitated. A part of me, albeit a very small part, wanted him to go just so I could avoid the questions that would inevitably appear about my mom, but of course I really didn't want him to go. He seemed to take my moment of silence as an answer. "That's what I thought," he replied, plopping himself down on the longer side of the sectional and stretching out.

_I guess it won't hurt if he stays a little longer_, I sighed to myself and grabbed the remote to the TV before situating myself on the shorter side of the sofa, our heads meeting at the corner of the two connected sections. I rested my head on my elbow and flipped on the TV. The glow of the TV was the only light in the room, giving everything a bluish tint. The only thing on at this time were the late night talk shows, so I just left it on one that looked semi-interesting.

I heard a loud yawn and turned to see Paul closing his mouth and running a hand over his face. "Are you ok?" I asked him. "Seriously, you don't have to stay."

"I'm fine, Molly," he said around another yawn. I gave him a pointed look. "It was just a rough patrol tonight." His eyes widened slightly as if he realized something he shouldn't have said.

"Patrol?" I asked, semi-confused.

"Yeah, with the other guys. It's our job, sort of. We like to make sure La Push is safe," he explained rather vaguely.

"So...like police or something?"

"Yeah, something like that," he said, flipping onto his stomach so he could see me better.

We were silent for a beat before he asked, "What's your middle name?"

This would probably have seemed completely random to other people, but we had been asking each other random questions at random times so much over the past weeks that it wasn't even very random to us anymore.

"Morgan," I answered. We had gotten so comfortable with it, that we hardly even stopped to deliberate whether or not we should answer. We usually just did.

"Molly Morgan. I like that. It sounds really familiar though," he mused. His face scrunched the tiniest bit causing him to make an adorable face.

"Have you ever had to read _The Pastures of Heaven_ in school?" I asked through my smile at his face.

"Oh yeah. Hemingway, right?"

"Steinbeck," I corrected. "'Molly Morgan' is one of the short stories."

"Right, right," he said, remembering.

"What's yours?" I asked, lowering my elbow and resting the side of my head on my arms facing the TV.

"I don't have one."

"Really?"

"Mmhmm," he replied tiredly.

We continued on with a couple more questions before my eyelids were too heavy to hold open.

I awoke with a sudden start sometime later. I couldn't exactly pinpoint what had woken me up, but I turned my head and saw the top of Paul's head. He must have fallen asleep too.

The TV was still glowing with what seemed to be an informercial, and when I looked at it, I noticed that it was blurry. I reached up automatically to my face and my glasses were gone. I squinted around and saw them laying folded on the coffee table. I reached over to grab them and the throw blanket from the back of the sofa slid off of me. I remembered that I had fallen asleep too suddenly to have taken off my glasses or covered myself up.

I slid on my glasses and looked at Paul. His face was so gentle looking as he slept, his chest rising and falling evenly. Then I realized that he hadn't just fallen asleep when I had. He had taken off my glasses for me and covered me with the blanket. I was then hit with another realization: he had stayed all night. It wasn't that I was feeling ashamed that a guy had stayed over night; it was the fact that he had made the decision to stay all night to watch out for me. I felt my heart squeeze at how caring and attentive he really was. No one had ever done those kind of things for me.

I silently slid out from under the cover and padded back to the laundry room. I stood on my tiptoes and reached for a couple of the spare pillows we had on a shelf. Just as quietly, I went back to the sofa. I tossed my pillow on the short side of the sectional, then very gently lifted Paul's head and slipped the pillow beneath it. I hit the display button for the TV and the time read 3:46 AM.

I laid back down after turning off the TV, but stared at him for a moment. I couldn't resist running my fingers through his hair lightly. It was surprisingly extremely soft. My heart fluttered again at this realization, although I have no idea why. I could have continued to stroke his hair all night, but he shifted slightly and mumbled something before breathing evenly again. I withdrew my hand, and smiled at him before closing my eyes.

* * *

I sat up with a sudden jolt when I heard a door bang upstairs. I turned and saw Paul had lifted his head from the pillow and was watching me. We stared at each other in silence as I waited for another noise from upstairs. I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard a door shut directly overhead.

"It's ok," I told Paul, sliding on my glasses. "She's realized that she has one hell of a hangover, and will probably just sleep it off the rest of the day in her room."

Paul didn't say anything, but sat up and stretched. I mirrored his movements. I looked out the sliding glass door and saw the misty blues of early morning. I let out a small yawn and wrapped the blanket around me before leaning back against the couch.

"Nice hair," Paul said, reaching out to flip my unruly morning curls. I grabbed his hand and moved my head back before he could reach it.

"Shut up," I said grumpily, but instead of releasing his hand, I turned mine and laced my fingers with his. It was a rather bold move for me even though we had held hands before. I had never been the one to initiate it. Paul didn't seem to mind, however, and he gave my hand a gentle squeeze before resting them between us, still entwined, on the sofa cushion. His thumb running over the back of mine slowly.

"Molly," he started after a few minutes. "We need to talk."

_Here it comes_, I thought. "I know. Let's get out of here though."

After Paul nodded his head in agreement, I ran upstairs quietly and changed into a pair of jeans and a teal t-shirt. I headed back down after sliding on my tennis shoes and grabbing my white zip up jacket. I didn't bother putting in my contacts. I could wear my glasses all day.

When I got downstairs, Paul already had Boomer's leash hooked to his harness. "Do you want to go home and change or anything?" I asked him.

"No, I'll be ok," he said, smoothing out his plain white t-shirt. "Thanks for the pillow last night, by the way." He gestured back toward the couch where he had folded the blanket and stacked the pillows on top of it.

"Thanks for the blanket," I said in return, then we smiled at each other. "And for staying. You really didn't have to stay all night."

"I had to make sure you were safe," he said sincerely.

We slid out the backdoor, and out the gate in the fence of the backyard. We walked down the road in silence, Paul holding Boomer's leash loosely in his hand, and our arms brushing against the each other occasionally. It was still fairly early. The grass and trees were still dewy and the air was cool and slightly foggy.

We walked all the way to First Beach. The breeze from the water was chilly, and there was no one else on the beach. I didn't know whether it was from the cold or the early morning, but it really didn't bother me much.

Paul unhooked Boomer so he could run around, then he just looked at me silently, and I knew that was my cue to begin explaining.

I sat down on the ground, staring out over the water, and he followed suit, sitting beside me, before I began. "You already know about my parent's divorce and everything, but what I left out was what happened to my mom after the divorce." I paused for a moment to take a deep breath. Paul's hand moved to cover mine, and I concentrated on his warmth. "She started drinking. A lot. Apparently I wasn't enough for her after my dad left. She really did love him, and he broke her heart. She started coming home drunk to the apartment where she and I stayed until she got a new job. It wasn't everyday or really bad when she first started, but then she started going out more with different guys. Pretty soon she was staying at home just to get drunk. I learned to take care of her, and to deal with her drunken tirades. Soon it was too much. I was only 16 and going to school. I couldn't handle having to try to stay out of her way and hiding her car keys to be sure she wouldn't go anywhere. I called my Uncle Eric, her brother, and he came all the way there from Seattle. He took care of it, got her some help and it was going really good until yesterday. She's not and never really was a raving alcoholic, but she took it too far."

"Did she hit you before?" I could tell he was trying really hard to control his voice.

"No," I said firmly. Paul raised his eyebrows slightly. "I promise, Paul. Last night was the first time. I'm not some battered teenager that's been keeping quiet. I refuse to be one of those. Yes, I love my mom, but if she ever started seriously hitting me, I would be gone."

"What about your dad?" Paul asked, concern flooded his eyes and his entire expression. "Yesterday was the first time I ever really heard you mention him other than telling me he cheated on your mom. Didn't he want to help you?"

"He was too busy to be bothered," I said, turning my head away from him, my voice thick and on the verge of breaking. "He was always that way. For me, at least. During the divorce, there wasn't even a big custody issue over who wanted me to live with them. Sure, I was old enough to make my own decision on who I wanted to live with, but I didn't have a choice, really. Dad immediately went for the 'demanding doctor' that wouldn't be 'fit as a single parent' route, basically just shoving me off on my mom. He wanted to be able to see that woman, my now soon-to-be step-mother, without anything tying him down. He didn't want me. My mom tried to get him to take me. If he was going to have his own life she wanted one too. She didn't want me either." I was blinking back tears at this point, then whispered, "No one does." My own parents didn't want me. I wiped away a stray tear, feeling extremely pathetic.

"I do."

My head whipped in Paul's direction, sure that I heard him wrong. "What?" My voice came out shaky.

"I want you, Molly. Everything about you. I want to be around you all the time. I always want to hear your laugh, listen to your voice. I want you to know I'm here for you no matter what and make sure you're ok. I want..." He trailed off, but his eyes were delving deeply into mine and I could see his eyes start blaze.

He lifted his hand to my unbruised cheek, then suddenly his lips were on mine.

I was shocked for a moment. My mind didn't know how to function anymore. Paul was kissing me! I quickly relaxed at the feel of his soft scorching lips, and I kissed him back, my heart pounding. Nothing had ever felt so right before. It wasn't a very heated kiss, soft and slow, but I could feel what he was trying to say. He cared. I finally understood that his strange concern for me was because he really did care. Not only that, but he _liked_ me.

Paul pulled away after just a moment, and I slowly opened my eyes. He was staring right at me with an unsure expression.

I couldn't help it. A huge smile stretched across my face. His eyes immediately lit up, and a joyous chuckle left his lips. I threw my arms around his neck, and he stood, pulling me up with him. He wrapped his arms around my waist and twirled us around. _He likes me!_ I screamed in my head.

"And you have no idea how long I've wanted to do that," he said, still laughing in happiness. I'd never seen his face so bright before.

"So what does this mean?" I asked him when he was still again, and he had set me back on my feet with his arms still around me. I understood that he liked me, and I knew that I definitely liked him, but I wasn't sure what he wanted.

"Well, I hope it means you are mine, because I am most definitely yours whether you want me or not," Paul answered with the same enormous grin on his face.

"Paul," I said, looking into his eyes, not even having to pause and think. "I'm yours."

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**a/n: let me know what you think ;)**


	12. Chapter 12

**a/n: thanks so much for the reviews!! i know this chapter took a little longer to get out, and i'm terribly sorry for that but the internet at my house was down for ages and my friends and i were all home for spring break from college last week so i couldn't use a school computer. Enough excuses though, here is the next chapter and i hope you all enjoy it :D I got a lot of great reviews and a bunch of new reviewers so i hope you keep it up. Ch 11 is now the most reviewed chapter with 28 reviews!!! Whoo!  


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**"How tall are you?" I asked Paul as we sat on the beach together, staring out over the waves in the ocean and watching Boomer romp around. The smile hadn't left his face since I told him I was his. To be honest, I was sure the smile hadn't left my face either.

"I'm around 6 foot 6, give or take an inch or so," he replied nonchalantly.

"Really?" I asked disbelievingly. Sure, I knew he was tall. I could see that by just looking at him, but hearing the exact measurement was daunting. "Gosh, I'm only 5 foot 1. You are over a foot taller than me!"

"Sure," he started,"but I like that you are tiny."

"Why's that?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Because," he said, looking at me and his smile growing bigger if at all possible. "It makes it much easier to do this-" He reached out, grasped me around my waist, and lifted me onto his lap. He then proceeded to wrap his huge arms around me and hold me to his chest, his chin resting on my shoulder.

"See?" he said. "It works out very nicely."

It was true. We just seemed to fit together perfectly. There were no awkward elbows jabbing each other or hands landing in the wrong places. It was just overall completely comfortable.

"I would definitely have to agree with that," I said, my voice coming out a bit breathy. I couldn't bring myself to care, though. This was certainly a position I wouldn't mind being in more often. "Of course, it could have more to do with your giantness than my shortness, you know." I poked him playfully on the arm, but that caused my thoughts to quickly wonder to his extremely muscular biceps peaking out from under the edge of his sleeve, which, of course, led to his just as muscular forearms that happened to be wrapped around me. I was practically giddy at the prospect of me being in his arms more often.

"Yeah, well," he began to reply. "It doesn't really matter, right? It works for us."

_Us_, I thought. My heart fluttered erratically as I heard him use it so naturally. **_Us_**. _Us, Us, Us, Us, US!_ We were an 'Us'. Paul and I. It was finally hitting me that we were actually together, and I could have squealed in delight. I did manage to refrain from that, but it didn't stop my happiness from bubbling over into a few uninhibited laughs.

"What's so funny?" Paul asked with a furrowed brow and apparently permanent smile.

"Nothing," I said through a few chuckles, turning my head to see him better. "I just can't tell you how happy I am." I felt him laugh a little too, whether at my reasoning or out of his own happiness I couldn't be sure.

"Well, I'm glad," he said. "Because you have no idea how happy I am either." He tightened his arms around me in a hug, and I wrapped my arms around his and squeezed him back.

"Now," he said, putting his hands on my waist again and pushing me up so I was standing. "I don't know about you," he continued, standing up himself. "But I am starving. I'm sure Emily has cooked breakfast too."

Taking the hint, I whistled for Boomer. He immediately stopped digging around and his ears perked up, looking in my direction. "Boomer!" I called, and he started running towards me.

When he reached us, I clipped his leash to his harness and turned to Paul. "Ready?" I asked.

"Actually," he started,"there's something I need to do."

Before I could question him, both of his hands were on either side of my face and he lowered his lips to mine. Our lips moved against each other perfectly for a few blissful moments, and I thought my heart was just going to stop beating right there. I didn't think I would ever get tired of that feeling.

"What was that for?" I asked him after we pulled away. _Not that I minded it_... My breath was a bit ragged but I couldn't find any embarrassment seeing as his breath was too.

"That's the point. It wasn't _for_ anything," he said looking completely joyous. "I can kiss you whenever I feel like it now." His eyes sparkled as if he was very pleased with this outlook.

I blushed, but tried to cover it up by changing the subject, "Alright, let's get going, Romeo." I ducked my head trying to hide my smile, but I knew he saw it when I heard him chuckle.

We started walking back toward the road while I looped Boomer's leash around my wrist, and laced my other hand with one of Paul's. The question of Paul's warmth was still on my mind, and continued to be refreshed every time we touched. It just seemed very unnatural to constantly be as warm as he was and not be running a fever. He had mentioned before that it was a "Quileute thing," but he never elaborated. I hadn't really confronted him about it directly, but I was really beginning to wonder. I couldn't ask him yet, because it was his turn since I asked him how tall he was.

"What's the weirdest thing you've ever eaten?" he asked me.

I silently cheered because now I could ask him about his being so warm. I did take a moment to think about his question though. "Well, I guess it was probably at the sleepover Jill, Samantha, and I had after the carnival actually. We were just sitting on my bed with all of our junk food, and Jill started putting a little of everything on a piece of pizza. I don't think she was really thinking about it, you know, just randomly putting things on there. When she finished though, it was a piece of cheese pizza topped with barbecue flavored chips, part of a cookie, garlic butter sauce, french onion dip, and some bits of chocolate. She dared me to eat it, and I did."

I looked up at him after I finished, and saw his face was scrunched somewhere between disgust and amusement. "You look so cute when you scrunch your face like that," I blurted. My cheeks burned in embarrassment, but Paul's face just broke into another smile, and he looked oddly smug.

"So you ate the whole thing?" he asked back to the slightly disgusted look.

"No way! Just a few bites. It wasn't all that bad." I noticed him shudder slightly as if trying to imagine eating that. "Hey, you asked," I said with a laugh.

"Yeah, yeah. Well, remind me never to dare you to do anything. You probably actually would..."

"Probably. So," I started out my question, "Why are you always so warm?"

I noticed his eyes tighten around the edges and his smile didn't seem quite as easy as it had been. His grip loosened on my hand as if he was going to let go, but then, seeming to think better of it, gripped it tighter than before.

"Please don't ask me that, Molly," he said, sounding agonized. I was caught off guard. I wasn't expecting him to respond that way. "Not right now, at least. I can't exactly tell you why, and I don't want to lie to you about it."

"You can't tell me?" I was kind of hurt that that was his reasoning.

"Well, I-I could, but I just-" he was stammering. "There's...something you need to know, but the timing has to be right. Understand? I just need a little more...time."

I nodded my head looking at the ground. I knew it must have been something really big if he was being so serious about it. Now I knew for sure there was something he was keeping from me. _What do you expect, Molly,_ I berated myself. _He's been your boyfriend for all of an hour. You can't expect him to spill his deepest secrets just yet._

"You're angry," Paul stated, sounding put out.

"No," I said slowly. And I wasn't. "I'm not mad. I understand there are things you don't want to tell me, but...just know you aren't going to scare me away, ok?" I hadn't meant to say that, but the more I thought about it, the more I could see myself being with Paul for a long time. I couldn't imagine whatever he wasn't telling me could be extremely horrible. Maybe he lost that infamous temper of his, and did something rash. I could only speculate.

I heard him mumble something to himself, but couldn't make out exactly what he said. I didn't ask him about it because he reached down and took Boomer's leash from me, then hoisted me onto his back again.

"What is it with you and not letting me walk?" I asked, gripping his shoulders as he hooked his arms under my knees and Boomer trotted out in front of us.

"I don't know. I just like having you close, that's all," he answered honestly. I couldn't help but smile at that and leaned into him.

When we reached Sam and Emily's, the other guys were about to walk in the door.

"You're up early considering you didn't have to work last night," Embry grumbled at Paul. I looked at all the others and they looked really tired.

"You know I had something to do," Paul returned, gripping my legs a little tighter as he continued to walk toward the porch. When we got to the stairs, he let me down and tied Boomer to the porch railing.

"Your face looks better, Molly," Jared directed at me. My eyebrows scrunched in confusion for a moment. Jared hadn't been there last night. He must have noticed my confused look, because Jacob nudged him and Jared quickly said, "The others told me about it."

I noticed Paul all but growl in response, and we all continued into the house, deciding it best not to go into that right now.

When we reached the kitchen, I almost gasped at the amount of food. There were piles of eggs, biscuits, bacon, muffins, and almost every other type of breakfast food. Apparently Emily was an amazing cook.

"Ok. Boys sit down and try not to harm anyone while serving yourselves," Emily said, wiping her hands on a towel. "Oh, Molly. I didn't know you were coming. Have a seat. There is plenty of food, but I'd grab some in a hurry because these boys waste nothing." She gathered me in a welcoming hug then took my chin in her hand. "Well that does look a little better," she tsked at my bruised face. I gave her a half-smile and a shrug. What could I do?

"Let the ladies go first," Sam ordered the others as we all crammed around the table.

I took a seat on the corner with Paul on my right so I wouldn't elbow him while he was eating since he was right handed and I was a lefty. Emily started putting things on her plate, and the others were looking at me expectantly.

"Oh," I said, remembering that they were waiting on me. I quickly grabbed a muffin and sat it on my plate, content with just that.

"Is that all you want?" Emily asked. "Trust me, there won't be anything left if you let them have it."

"I'm sure," I said, nodding at them to go ahead since Emily had gotten what she wanted.

"Maybe that's why you're so short, Molly," Quil taunted. "You never eat, and it's stunted your growth."

I stuck my tongue out at him childishly. "I do so eat," I informed him.

"What did you have for dinner last night?" he challenged.

I enjoyed the banter. It made me feel even more at home with the guys than I already did. "Um," I thought for a moment trying to remember something as mundane as what I ate considering the other events of last night as well as this morning. "A cheese sandwich."

The clinking of serving spoons and forks against plates as the others began eating suddenly ceased. I looked up from my muffin and saw the guys staring at me mid-bite or in the midst of piling more food on their already mountainous plates.

"A cheese sandwich?" Jacob asked. "As in, two pieces of bread with a slice of cheese in the middle?"

"Yeah," I said slowly. "I didn't want to get sick before practice and then I didn't really have time to get anything else afterward."

They stared at me for another moment before suddenly they were all piling different things on my plate at once. I was shocked at the frenzy of food falling onto my plate. "Guys! Stop!"

When they stopped I had some of everything on my plate and I knew there was no way I could eat it all.

"Eat," Paul commanded from beside me, pointing at my plate. I looked at him for a moment with raised eyebrows. He may be my boyfriend now but he was not going to boss me around. "Please?" he added and I smiled at him. He caught on quick.

I picked up my fork and took an exaggerated bite of eggs. "Happy?"

"Very. Thank you," he replied, leaning down and kissing the top of my head.

I noticed everyone's eyes flicker between us momentarily. I was just waiting to see if anyone would ask something about our relationship change. Of course, we hadn't mentioned anything about it, and we weren't acting too out of character with each other, but I felt like the change was obvious even though to others it probably wasn't.

"This is great, Emily," I complimented her, and I meant it. This was the best food I had had in a long time, plus it was homemade which made it that much better.

"Thank you," Emily smiled warmly at me. "I'm glad you're enjoying it."

Paul would often glance at me from the corner of his eye and smile as if hoping I wouldn't notice, but I did. Apparently so did the others.

"So," Jared drug out after we had been eating for a few moments. "What's going on with you two?" He gestured from me to Paul with his fork from across the table.

"None of your damn business," Paul replied, continuing to eat. He did, however, grab my right hand with his left under the table.

I stayed quiet. If Paul didn't want everyone to know then I guess I would respect that. It did set a slightly uneasy feeling in the back of my mind. Did he not want people knowing?

"Oh come on, Paul. You know you can't keep anything from us for long," Embry joined in.

"If I can't keep anything from you then you should already know."

Emily's eyes looked bright and hopeful, but she kept her silence as well.

"Then if we already know, I would say that Molly is your girlfriend," Quil gave his two cents and grinned.

Paul turned his head to look at me as he answered, "That she is." And the corners of his mouth lifted into a smile.

"Well it's about damn time," Jacob said.

"Seriously, man. Finally," Embry filled in.

_Finally?_ I thought. That made me feel better. My heart seemed to grow as I realized they meant Paul had liked me for a while now too.

"Welcome to the family, Moll," Quil reached over and ruffled my hair, knocking my glasses askew.

"I knew it. Molly, you are the only one that can get him to say 'please' or 'thank you', and he's always harping on about you," Jared revealed.

Paul reached across the table and smacked Jared on the head, "Shut the hell up, man."

"Jared," Sam interrupted before a fight could break out. "Kim called earlier."

"Really?" Jared's face lit up and he smiled hugely.

"No. Now leave Paul alone."

The guys laughed loudly as Jared's face fell. Emily was even trying to fight her smile but I caught the wink she sent my way when I caught her eye. I really loved this odd family they had formed, and that I was apparently now a part of.

I thought my face would crack from the laughter and just the joy I felt from having my hand wrapped in Paul's. I was even able to ignore the slight pain my smiling caused my bruise. My carefree feeling was interrupted, however, when my cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I quickly pulled it out and looked at the caller ID.

"Excuse me," I said, standing from the table. I pushed my uneaten food toward Paul and he gave me a questioning look before letting my hand go. I gave him a reassuring smile before stepping out to the front porch and flipping my phone open.

"Dad?"

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**a/n: enter Molly's elusive father. ooooh. sort of cliffy, but hey i don't really do that many and i don't know how cliffy you think this is anyway. By the way, that pizza thing with all of the random stuff on it is true. We did it at my friend's house and our best friend ate it :D i don't think I have any other announcements or random things to say so...REVIEW!!! much love!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: finally! this chapter gave me some trouble as far as writer's block goes. Also, I finished my first year of college a couple of weeks ago, so i had finals to deal with. plus my boyfriend is in the Army and recently he got sent to Afghanistan for a year, so i've had some stuff to deal with. Here is the next chapter, and while i wasn't very happy with it, i got more into it near the end, so please review and let me know what you think. Ch. 12 is now the most reviewed with 32 reviews!! of course that was over two months so can we beat that in a shorter time??? My new goal is 300 reviews and i think we can make it :)

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"Dad?"

"Hello, Molly. How are you?" My father's voice flowed through the speaker of my phone.

"I'm fine," -mostly- "I was just having breakfast with a few friends. How are you?" I felt the need to be formal with him because any type of long term conversation we attempted to have always turned out awkward.

"I'm doing well, thank you. I assume your mother told you my news?"

My hand unconsciously went to my cheek. "Yes. She told me." I moved to the edge of the porch and sat down on the top step. Boomer walked up the steps as far as his leash would allow and sat beside me.

"Good. Well, I would love for you to be here for it and Clarissa wants it as well. It was her idea actually."

_Clarissa._ So that was her name. It fit so well with Clint Bridges. I wasn't sure if he meant the invitation in a good way, as in to show they both wanted me there, or if my own father was only going to invite me to his wedding because his new fiancee wanted it.

I blew a puff of air into the phone, "I don't know, Dad. I mean, I haven't even met this Clarissa before."

"Of course, I'm aware of that," he replied in a snippy tone. "That's why I'm planning a trip up to Washington to see you."

"What?!" I was suddenly on my feet again. Boomer lowered his ears and whined a bit at my sudden outburst. My dad could not be planning on bringing the woman he cheated on my mother with here where my mother and I had moved to get away from him. "That is definitely not a good idea."

"Yes it is. This way you will get to meet Clarissa and the kids beforehand," he overrode my thoughts.

"Kids?!" This was just getting worse and worse.

"Yes, Molly, Clarissa has children of her own. Two twin girls your age, Chloe and Clara, and a son a year older, Clark. They are just wonderful kids. You'll get along great."

So he had just went off and not only found a new wife but an entirely new family, complete with kids and everything. Not to mention their names! Clint, Clarissa, Chloe, Clara, and Clark! It was borderline ridiculous!

"Besides that," he continued on, completely oblivious to my mental breakdown. "Clarissa has family in Seattle that might not be able to make it for the wedding, so we found a beach on an Indian reservation near where you live now and we're planning on having a little get together there before the actual wedding."

_No!_ I wanted to scream. He couldn't just bring this home-wrecking family into my new life! He couldn't just come to where I hang out with my new friends, where I'm actually being happy despite my family's issues.

"But, Dad, I still don't think this is a good idea," I tried again to get him to reconsider. Mom would absolutely flip out. Seeing him again, along with his new family to be, would definitely send her on an already downward spiral.

"Molly Morgan," I cringed at the way he said my name: sharp and tight, not at all like the way it flowed from Paul, soft and reassuring, "The plans have already been made, and I don't need to hear your complaints about it. We'll be there in two weeks."

"Two weeks? Why so soon? Shouldn't things like this happen closer to the wedding?"

"The wedding is going to be in two months. We didn't see any point in dragging it out longer than necessary. I would appreciate it if you could inform Shannon of our intended visit."

"You want me to tell Mom?!" I thought of how she had reacted last night and this time I would be the one delivering the news. The phrase "don't kill the messenger" popped into my head, and I smiled grimly to myself as I paced along the porch. "Why can't you just tell Mom?"

"Well, after our conversation, if you could call it that, yesterday, I do not find the idea of speaking to your mother anytime soon very appealing."

"So you want to pawn it off on me?!" My voice rose, but I didn't care. When was he going to grow up and face his own problems? "Dad, these are your plans. You are the one that is getting married, and you are the one coming here uninvited! I am not delivering your news just because you don't want to listen to Mom. And I am not just some go-between for you and Mom to use when you don't want to speak to one another. I am your daughter!" I snapped my phone shut as I ended my rant, not wanting to hear what Clint had to say.

I fumed for a moment before I was hit with what I had just done. I had yelled at my father and hung up on him. He was going to be furious. The adrenaline from my sudden burst of anger that had fueled my rant was ebbing away, and now I was fearing the repercussions of what Clint would do for being treated with such disrespect. A part of me didn't care what he would do because he really had no hold over me. He couldn't ground me or anything like that since he didn't have custody of me, but he could still yell and getting yelled _at_ was always something that gave my self-confidence and esteem a low blow.

I took a deep breath and I nearly had a heart attack when my phone started vibrating in my hand as I was already on edge. I looked at the Caller ID and saw **DAD** on the screen. I could practically see him shaking in anger much like the vibrating phone. I quickly hit the silence button and the vibrations stopped but the screen was still glowing as it continued to scream silently at me. I just gripped it in my hand tightly and decided I would deal with it later.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and turned to go back into the house where I was sure everyone had finished eating. As I walked into the living room, I saw that I was correct. Everyone was sitting around watching television. This time most of them actually seemed to be watching the show and not just staring at the screen, even laughing at the correct times. Paul, however, was watching me closely. I didn't say anything as I walked toward the sofa he was occupying and neither did he as he pulled me onto his lap and kissed my head.

I curled into him gratefully with my head under his chin, but before I could get too settled my phone went off again. I quickly hit the silence button again and turned the phone over so I couldn't see the glowing screen.

"Are you ok?" Paul asked into my hair.

I just nodded against him as my phone went off yet again. His wait times were getting shorter. My knuckles turned white as I gripped the phone again. **DAD**. He must have been really pissed. I just silenced it again, but this time set it on the cushion beside the one Paul was sitting on.

Paul started playing with my hair what seemed to be absentmindedly. He'd pick some of it up then let it fall back to my shoulders again and again. It was rather soothing. We were able to watch a few minutes of the show before my phone started vibrating again. Paul's hand stopped playing with my hair abruptly. I was about to get really upset. Could Clint not tell I didn't want to talk to him right now? I was about to reach for my phone again, but my arms were held in place by one of Paul's long ones. He reached with his other hand and picked up the phone to look at the screen. I could practically feel his confusion as to why I didn't want to talk to my dad, but he didn't say anything.

As soon as the phone stopped ringing, Paul flipped it open and turned it off before putting it in his pocket. He was taking care of the problem for me. I smiled at the protectiveness of it. I guess he could tell I was getting upset. I wrapped my arms around him in thanks and we settled in comfortably to watch the TV.

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It was late afternoon before Paul and I started back to my house. We were walking comfortably hand in hand down the road toward Forks with Boomer walking contentedly beside me.

"So why don't you want to talk to your dad?" Paul brought up as we were walking.

"He's just being a complete asshole," I replied honestly. I noticed an amused expression cross Paul's face for a moment, probably at my word choice to describe Clint. "He's decided that he's bringing his soon to be new family _here_ so I can meet them. They're even going to have a party at First Beach before the wedding!" I was gesturing grandly as I tended to do when I was talking passionately about something, but instead of releasing my hand, Paul just let his arm be pulled around with my motions.

"Maybe they won't be so bad."

I shot him an incredulous look. "I know. I know: Not likely," he said for me. "I'm just trying to make you feel better, babes." He released my hand at this to put his arm around my shoulder and pull me to his side.

I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face when he called me 'babes.' It was a pet name that I could actually stand. It wasn't a sleazy sounding 'baby' or a slightly demeaning 'babe.' It was sweet.

"I know you are," I sighed. "Maybe I'm being more difficult about this than I should be, but I just can't help it. He threw away one family and already has another one. What does that say about me and my mom? We're easily replaced?" I put my arm around his waist and leaned into him.

"You could never be replaced. You are far too special and perfect for someone else to even be able to come close to you. Your dad obviously doesn't know what he's missing," Paul stated, smiling down at me.

As we turned into my driveway I noticed another car there that I hadn't seen in a while.

"Shit," I cursed as I saw it, then hastened my steps toward the house thinking something must be wrong.

"Are you ok?" Paul asked worriedly.

"Will you put Boomer in the fence for me please?" I was hoping to scope out what was going on before Paul came in too.

"Molly," Paul's strength stopped me in my attempt to keep walking as he stood still. "I'm not letting you go in there by yourself if you think there might be something wrong, and judging by the look on your face, you do think there might be." He was looking very seriously at me.

I quickly composed my face, but knew it was useless as Paul would see right through it._ What would it hurt? He's already seen how messed up your family is, and if he wants to be there for you then let him,_ I thought to myself. Using the outside gate, I let Boomer into the backyard before turning towards the house.

"Alright. Let's go." We walked up the porch and I carefully opened the front door, hoping to make as little noise as possible. I still wanted to see what the situation was like before I made our presence known.

I heard a male voice before I actually saw the body that went with it,"She's sleeping right now. No, Molly still isn't here. If she isn't soon, then I'm calling the police. After that phone call I have no idea what to think."

Hearing the worry evident in his voice, I decided to step up before he could do anything drastic. "Uncle Eric?" I called, stepping into his view as he stood outside my mother's bedroom door. Paul was still firmly by my side.

Eric's brown eyes met mine, and he swept a hand through his already tousled raven hair. "Oh, thank goodness. Laura, Molly's here," Eric informed my aunt, his wife. "I'll call you back." He opened his mouth to say more, but I motioned for us to go into the basement first where we were less likely to wake Shannon. I didn't missed the calculating look he gave in Paul's direction.

"What happened?" Eric asked me right away. He did send a few wary glances at Paul, which I couldn't blame him for. Even at only 18 Paul was quite intimidating, coupled with the fact that he stood quite a few inches taller than my uncle.

"What do you mean?" I tried to divert the subject. I knew exactly why he was here, but I didn't know how he knew to be here. He did not need to take on this burden again.

"Don't, Molly. Don't try to hide things for your mother," Eric said in a stern adult voice.

"She just slipped up and drank too much. Nothing major."

"Oh, really," He stepped forward and took my chin much like Sam had done. I knew he was looking at the bruise. "Then why did my sister call me, slurring out most of her hysterical comments like 'I hit my baby! She's gone!'?"

I averted my gaze downward and noticed Paul's clenched fists. He didn't need to hear all of this. "Paul?" He immediately looked down at me with soft eyes. "Will you wait outside with Boomer? I need to talk to my uncle alone."

I could see his hesitation, he really didn't want to leave me. I nodded my head encouragingly, letting him know it would be fine. He deliberated for another brief moment before handing me my phone from his pocket and going out the sliding glass door.

I looked back at my uncle and he said, "We'll get to him in a minute." He nodded his head towards Paul, but had a small smile on his face, trying to lighten the very serious mood. "Now tell me what happened, and I mean the truth, Molly."

I exhaled loudly then began, "I got home from softball practice and found Mom completely wasted. She told me that Dad had called and said he's getting married," Eric hung his head in exasperation at this. "Apparently he wants me to be there, and that upset her, so she started yelling and throwing things. She slapped me then yelled at me to get out, so I did." I finished the very short version of last night feeling slightly surreal that something that seemed to have lasted ages could be summed up in a few words.

"So you stayed out all night?" His voice was concerned but also incredulous.

"No. I actually walked to a friend's house down the way a bit. They took care of me, then Paul and a few other friends showed up. They let me stay as long as I needed, then Paul came home with me to make sure I was going to be ok. I cleaned up the mess, made sure Mom was alright, and went to sleep." I said everything methodically and factual, keeping out most of the emotion. It was easier this way.

"So where were you this morning?" He didn't say it accusingly, but as if he was trying to keep things straight.

"I got up early and left before Mom could wake up again. I checked on her. She was fine, so I left."

"To this friend's house again?" He questioned.

"Actually I went to the beach with Paul first and then to the friend's house. Obviously you got here before I got back."

"Is there anything else I need to know about?" He looked me squarely in the eye as he asked.

"Dad's been calling," I informed him. "He said he and his soon-to-be family are coming _here_. I sort of lost my temper with him and hung up. He wasn't happy." I took this opportunity to turn my phone back on, knowing there would be an irate message from Clint left.

I saw a small smirk form on Eric's face. "Well how did he handle hearing about Shannon's episode last night?" He said it with a bitter undertone. He had little respect for Clint after my father practically abandoned us.

"I didn't tell him," I answered sheepishly, biting my lip.

He just nodded his head as if it were for the best. "So, Paul, is it?" His voice now held a teasing tone as we both turned to look out the glass door. Paul was tossing one of Boomer's toys around the yard for the dog. This was one thing I loved most about my uncle: he was more of my fatherly figure then Clint ever was, but he could still just be my friend.

"Yes. Paul," I said, unable to keep the smile from my face.

"And you two are...?" He trailed off leaving it for me to provide the missing information.

"He's my boyfriend," I replied still smiling with butterflies creating a hurricane in my stomach.

"Isn't he a bit old for you?"

"He's only a year older than me. He just looks a lot older. His friends are the same way though, so it must be a Quileute thing," I stated, using Paul's reasoning since it was the only reason I had anyway.

"He's a good guy, right?" Eric asked, stepping into the role of protective uncle.

"Yes. He's a very good guy. He likes to know I'm ok." I was jerked from my musings when my phone started vibrating in my hand yet again. "It's Dad," I informed Eric after glancing at the screen.

"I'll take care of this," he took the phone from my hand. "You go outside. Clint? It's Eric..."

I slid out the door and into the backyard with my boys. Boomer immediately abandoned his game with Paul to come greet me.

"You ok?" Paul asked after he easily crossed the yard in a few strides.

"Yeah, I'm fine. That's my uncle, by the way," I gestured back towards the house.

"I caught that," he said with an easy smile that sent my heart racing.

"My dad called again. Eric's talking to him, so I guess that means we wait to see-" I stopped talking when I heard a piercing howl reverberating through the air. I glanced at Boomer, but as he stood perfectly still with his ears cocked, I realized it didn't come from him. "Was that...was that a _wolf_?" I looked at Paul and he was completely rigid. It sounded close.

Physically shaking his head, Paul looked back at me, "Uh, yeah, probably. We have a few around here, but don't worry," he paused as another, softer howl was heard from a different direction. "They usually stick to the woods. I gotta get going, Molly. I'll talk to you later, alright?" He leaned down and kissed me swiftly on the head, and before I could even respond he was out the gate.

I went to the gate after him, but Paul was already no where to been seen. I slumped back on my heels confused by his sudden departure.

A moment later I heard another howl.

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**a/n: oooh. now don't expect him to reveal his big secret in the next chapter or anytime drastically soon. there are still some things that need to happen, but i hope you enjoyed. let me know :) love!!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I am so sorry for the extremely long wait in updating!! I've started back to college so that is taking up a lot of my time now. This chapter is dedicated to SunnyZim for posting the 300th review and for checking up on me to see when i'm going to update XD. We got up to 320 reviews!!! Chapter 13 is now the most reviewed with 40 reviews!! That is absolutely amazing!! Of course it did take quite a few months to get those...Anyway, I'm glad you guys are liking Uncle Eric. I'm lovin' him too :) Also thanks to those of you who mentioned my boyfriend in your reviews. I'm happy to say he's still doing well and hopefully will be home in a few months. I didn't really edit this chapter much because I wanted to get it out, so if you notice any mistakes let me know.  
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**another thing i wanted to bring up is that i'm reading another Paul/OC fic and i'm noticing some small similarities. Nothing like the same plot, but just little things that i put into my story that i think make it unique and are now showing up in another story. The author is on alerts for this story, but i'm not going to point her/him out. I only wish to say that I would appreciated it if it would stop. **

**Sorry for the long A/N and enjoy the next chapter!!

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After the air become eerily silent after the howling, I turned and went back into the house. Eric was no longer in the basement, so I ascended the stairs in search of him. I easily found him sitting at the table, my cell phone placed in front of him.

"How'd it go?" I said gesturing to the phone.

Eric sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Well, your father is a very stubborn man. He completely insisted that his visit was necessary despite what I had to say about it otherwise. I didn't tell him about your mom, but I did say that he could have handled the situation better. I never much liked your father," he added as almost an afterthought.

I had to smile at this, because I knew how highly, or should I say lowly, Eric thought of Clint.

"Yeah, well that's something I can't argue with," I stated, taking a seat at the table. I suddenly felt very tired, the way I used to feel constantly when Shannon was at her worst.

"Molly, I have to do something about Shannon," Eric said.

"Like what? This was the first time in a long time this has happened, Uncle Eric. She was just really upset," I said, slightly defending my mother.

"I understand that, but she can't just try to drink away her problems. Now that she's getting violent with you makes it even more important that this stops," he said seriously.

"Well what should we do?"

"No. No 'we', Molly. You are seventeen years old and had to deal with this too much as it is. But, also with being seventeen and obviously responsible, I think you could handle yourself on your own."

"I don't understand..." I trailed off. I had no idea where he was going with this. Was he suggesting that I move out? I was still in high school!

"I want Shannon to come stay with me so I can get her some help," he said, looking me straight in the eyes.

"What?" I couldn't let him do this again. "Eric, you can't. You took care of us before. You shouldn't have to do it again. Plus, if you don't want me to be around her, then she can't be around Travis!" I exclaimed, referring to my three year old cousin, Eric's son.

"Shannon is my sister, and you are my niece. I take care of my family," Eric said firmly. "Yes, she would be around Travis, but the difference is that you are the only other person here with her, and you can't be watching her all the time. In Seattle, I can make sure she gets help and Laura is there too. Travis will be fine, because we can watch him too."

"But that's not fair to you and your family," I tried reasoning.

"What's not fair is for you to have to be taking care of your mother when it should have been the other way around from the beginning."

I groaned and put my head in my hands. I wish for once things weren't so complicated.

"Molly," he said softly, and I felt his hand on the top of my head. "I'm an adult. Stop trying to look out for everyone else and focus on yourself for once. It doesn't make you weak."

I looked up as he said this and saw that he knew me better than I thought. I had no idea when that happened.

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Uncle Eric was true to his word and by Monday he and Shannon were on their way to Seattle, and I was on my own for possibly a few months. He arranged everything faster than I would have thought possible. My mother was difficult to convince probably more so after her hangover had subsided. Eric, however, being a level-headed adult and very persuasive had convinced her to go for the benefit of everyone. I helped pack her clothes while she and Eric went to the hospital to work out some way for her to miss work for an extended period of time without getting fired. Apparently her supervising doctor, Dr. Cullen or something, was very understanding.

I hadn't seen Paul since his slightly mysterious disappearance on Saturday. In fact, I hadn't seen any of the boys, but with trying to get things ready for Shannon's leaving, I hadn't had much time to visit La Push on Sunday.

I wasn't sure how to feel waking up Monday morning to get ready for school. Nothing seemed extremely different considering Shannon and I kept different waking and sleeping hours anyway, but now I didn't have to worry about being too loud or her embarrassing me in front of my friends.

It didn't hit me until I was sitting at the table eating a bowl of cereal with Boomer lying at my feet that I actually felt relieved. For once I wasn't going to have to worry about saying the wrong thing to my mother or having her say something terrible to my friends.

Thinking about my friends I realized I had a lot to tell Samantha and Jillian. Not about my mother of course, but the fact that Paul is now my boyfriend. They'll have a field day with that. I felt a smile creep onto my face thinking of their reaction and of course thinking about Paul. I really hoped I'd get to see Paul today even if I had to make a short trip to La Push.

I waited until Jillian, Samantha and I were seated at lunch before telling them about me and Paul. Luckily the makeup job I had done on my face this morning was working and no one had noticed the bruise on my face, which was thankfully fading fast.

"So, I have some news," I started out, trying to sound nonchalant as possible.

"Well let's have it then," Jillie said, arranging the food on her tray and seeming to not be paying much attention. This didn't deter me in the slightest. I knew I'd have her attention soon enough.

"Oh well, you know, I got to spend a bit of time with Paul and the guys over the weekend-"

"That's not news, Molly," Jillie interrupted yet again with a smile on her face.

"Let her finished, Jill," Sam said kindly.

"Fine, if you don't want to hear about my having a boyfriend then I'll just-"

"What?!" This time it was both Sam and Jillie that interrupted, a bit loudly I might add.

"Shh! Geez, we don't need more attention brought to us, thank you," I said, eying Tanner's table as he stared over.

"Well, spill it!"

"Alright," I said. I'd already figured out how I was going to spin the story so I could leave out the more serious events. "So after softball practice on Friday, my mom was in a major mood, so I went down to La Push for a while and hung out with the guys. Paul was being being really sweet and made sure I was ok, I mean, let's face it, we all know how my mom can be," they nodded, somewhat sheepishly, in agreement, "Anyway, we went to the beach Saturday morning so we could just talk and I told him how I had been feeling bad because of my mom and how my dad hadn't been there for me blah blah blah and how I'd always felt kind of unwanted and," I paused as a smile came across my face and looked the girls with their rapt attention, "He said he wanted me."

Jill and Sam squealed at the appropriate level of excitement.

"He didn't mean it in a sleazy way either," I added, "I mean, and he actually said this, he said that he wanted me so he could make sure I was ok and to be there for me. Just so he could listen to me laugh and be around me..." I trailed off thinking about it.

I heard the "Aww's" coming from across the table.

"Who knew bulky, kick-ass Paul was such a sap," Jill stated, with a dreamy expression on her face.

"Seriously, Molly, that is so sweet," Sam gushed.

"I know," I said almost to myself. "Oh, not to mention that he kissed me..."

And the squeals returned.

When school was over, I was feeling rather pleased about the boring day I had, but I know for a fact I was the only one that felt that way. Jillie was currently complaining about her history teacher's droning voice and how she hated his policy of deducting ten points for sleeping in class.

"I mean, he's practically begging for us to fall asleep in his monotonous tone!"

I smiled as I listened because I was thoroughly pleased with the lack of drama in my day. I had enough of that over the weekend to last me a good while. Of course with my father's impending visit, I knew I'd end up having more before I was ready for it.

As I finally pulled into my driveway after my boring, but no less draining, day, I saw something interesting laying on my front porch. A body. I was slightly alarmed by this as I couldn't yet make out any distinguishing features and by the fact that it hadn't moved in the slightest when I pulled into the driveway.

My alarm quickly faded though as I stepped toward the porch and saw that the body was someone abnormally tall for his age. I was still concerned however when Paul still hadn't moved after I was already up the steps and standing over him. His arm was draped over his eyes and his feet were resting on the third step as if he had started out sitting and then decided to lay down.

Feeling slightly unsteady with my overweight bag, I gently nudged his side with the toe of my shoe. Suddenly his hand shot up and grabbed my ankle causing me to shriek in surprise and wobble a bit uncertainly. Then Paul was sitting up and steadying me, saying, "Don't do that."

He sounded as if I had startled him, which I hadn't expected to be possible. "Sorry," I started, gaining my bearings back but noticing that the rapid beat of my heart had nothing to do with him startling me,"But you are the one that is apparently sleeping on my front porch."

"I just wanted to come see you," he said through a yawn as he wrapped his arm around my legs and leaned against them while I was still standing. I placed my hand on the top of his head and took advantage by sweeping my fingers through his locks slowly. His hair was extremely soft and he seemed to relax more against me.

"You didn't have to come by," I said as he yawned yet again.

"We've been together for two days, one of which I didn't even see you, and you're already trying to get rid of me?" he joked cheekily, tilting his head to look up at me.

"Of course not," I said, taking in his extremely tired looking features and looking at him with soft eyes, "You just seem really tired. I would've come by later."

"I was around this way anyway."

"Why? What were you doing?" I wondered. He and the others didn't normally come to the Forks side much.

He was quiet for a moment and I thought I felt him stiffen. "I just had some stuff to do. Nothing really," he finished quickly, then added cockily, "Maybe it was just an excuse to see you."

"Yeah, yeah," I said with a roll of my eyes. "Well, you know there are better places to sleep around here than my front porch, which I can't imagine being very comfortable." I unlocked my front door and gestured him to follow me upstairs so I could put my stuff away.

"Ah, look. A bed," I said as I tossed my bag onto my beanbag and sat down in my swivel chair.

Paul kind of hovered by the door for a moment, then said, "I don't think your mother would like it very much if she came home and found me in your bed," as he crossed the room and practically dove onto my comforter and grabbed one of my pillows.

I hesitated for a moment before realizing he would figure it out eventually so I might as well explain, "My mother isn't coming home." Paul's head popped up in curiosity at this.

"What do you mean she's not coming home?" He asked, rolling to look at me better and situating himself on the bed.

"My uncle took her back to Seattle with him," I started. "Getting drunk the other night made him realize that he needed to take care of her before she hit a relapse, I guess."

"How long is she going to be gone?" he asked, sitting up and furrowing his brow as he looked at me.

"I'm not certain," I shrugged. "These kinds of things take a while, I'm sure. She won't be here for my father's visit, which I think it a good thing."

"So you're going to be here by yourself, all alone, for 'a while?'"

"Well, it won't be any different than it normally is anyway. She wasn't here when I was most of the time or she was sleeping."

"Molly, I don't like this," he stated. "What if something were to happen?"

"What's gonna happen? This is Forks, remember?" I said lightly.

"Things can happen though. People have accidents and get hurt. Sometimes things are going on that you don't know about that could hurt you or-" He was rambling.

"Hey," I said, getting up from my chair and going to stand in front of him. With him sitting on the bed we were almost at eye level. "Are you ok? Is something going on?" I thought I saw a flash of guilt in his eyes before he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me to him.

"No, it's just...I don't know. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you, Molly," he said into my shoulder.

I leaned the side of my head against his, and answered, "Don't worry. If something were going to happen to me I don't think my mom's not being here is going to be a factor. Besides, I've got my big scary dog to look out for me," I added, jokingly, but Paul pulled back quickly.

"What?" He almost spat out, looking alarmed.

"Boomer..." I answered slowly. "You know, my dog..." Paul was beginning to worry me.

He looked confused for a moment then almost embarrassed. "Oh...right."

"Are you sure you're alright?" I slid my hand to his forehead which was burning up. Maybe he was sick.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," he said, taking my hand from his forehead and holding it in his which was just as hot. "I think I'm just more tired than I realized..."

"Well, why don't you lie down and sleep for a bit, ok? Maybe that'll make you feel better."

He nodded before putting his arms around me again and lying back down, taking me with him, then rolled to where we were on our sides facing each other.

"I thought you were the one that was taking the nap?" I joked.

"Won't you stay with me?" He asked softly, his eyes already closed.

Looking at him this close, I could see he looked horribly tired and ragged. What had he been doing the past few days?

"Of course," I said just as softly with a look of concern on my face that he couldn't see. I brushed my hand lightly across his cheek before kissing him on the forehead. I saw the corners of his lips pull up slightly before he tightened his arms around me and his breathing evened out.

I had a feeling something was going on with Paul.

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**A/N: Oooh foreshadowing!! Again, I'm so sorry for the wait on this and I know it's pretty much just a filler, but it's just how it came out. I hope no one thinks things are going too fast since they've only been officially together for a couple of days and "He's already in Molly's bed!!!" but they have known each other for a while now as friends and it's just a nap ;) Please review (so i'll know you guys are still there!) and let me know what you think. Love!  
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	15. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**I know you were hoping for a chapter, but I need to inform you of a slight break this story will be taking. It honestly pains me to do this, but I'm highly upset at the moment and feel this is the best thing to do. As mentioned in a previous a/n another author is using small things from my story in his/her own. I asked that this stop, but a new chapter for the story was posted recently and used yet another of my lines in the story. If I thought it was purely coincidental I of course would not being doing this but I feel the lines being used are unique enough to my story to know they are mine and not cliche lines used in several stories. So, to protect my story and ensure that you, my readers, are getting the best story you can from me, I will not be updating until the other story is complete in hopes that he/she won't be able to take new ideas from me. I want to be a big enough person not to report this author, because the story is indeed good, but it doesn't need any more of my help without my consent. Please don't ask for the author's name or story title because, again, I want to be the bigger person. I truly am sorry that my story and your enjoyment of it has to suffer due to others. I may change my mind and update if too much time has past and I feel it would be unfair to you, but don't expect anything soon. I hope I don't lose you as readers, and thank you for sticking with the story and reading this horribly long note. Much love.**

**-UM**


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